Thai Stock Market Tipped To End Losing Streak

(RTTNews) - Ahead of Thursday's holiday for Asarnha Bucha Day, the Thai stock market had moved lower in consecutive trading days, sinking more than a dozen points or 1 percent along the way. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just above the 1,110-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, with support expected from airline, steel and financial stocks. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were slightly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The SET finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the technology, service, resource and financial sectors.

For the day, the index shed 5.25 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 1,110.40 after trading between 1,108.09 and 1,120.45. Volume was 6.832 billion shares worth 27.165 billion baht. There were 266 decliners and 169 gainers, with 208 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Thailand Airport advanced 0.83 percent, while Banpu lost 0.49 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical fell 0.50 percent, Bangkok Expressway surged 5.37 percent, B. Grimm plummeted 5.50 percent, CP All Public contracted 1.66 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods jumped 1.86 percent, Energy Absolute stumbled 1.69 percent, Kasikornbank collected 0.64 percent, Krung Thai Card sank 0.80 percent, PTT Oil & Retail declined 1.79 percent, PTT Exploration and Production slumped 0.92 percent, PTT Global Chemical tumbled 1.97 percent, SCG Packaging retreated 1.20 percent, Siam Commercial Bank shed 0.42 percent, Siam Concrete rose 0.29 percent, True Corporation dropped 0.90 percent and TTB Bank, Bangkok Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Asset World, Advanced Info, Gulf, PTT, Thai Oil and BTS Group were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened lower on Thursday but gradually moved higher over the course of the day to end with small gains.

The Dow climbed 192.34 points or 0.43 percent to finish at 44,650.64, while the NASDAQ rose 19.33 points or 0.09 percent to close at 20,630.66 and the S&P 500 added 17.20 points or 0.27 percent to end at 6,280.46.

The higher close on Wall Street came despite ongoing uncertainty about President Donald Trump's trade policies as he continues to threaten higher tariffs on various sectors and countries.

On the economic front, the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly edged lower last week.

Crude oil prices fell on Thursday amid concerns about a supply increase for August by OPEC, the huge crude stock inventory in the United States and intensifying U.S. tariff pressures. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery tumbled $1.81 to settle at $66.57 per barrel.