BANGKOK: Ahead of Monday’s holiday for Makha Bucha Day, the Thai stock market had alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had gathered more than 15 points or 1 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now rests just above the 1,585-point plateau, and the market is looking at continued support on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, thanks to optimism on tax reform in the United States. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion. The SET finished slightly higher on Friday following mixed performances from the financial shares and the energy producers.
Among the actives, Airport of Thailand added 0.62 percent, while coal miner Banpu jumped 1.07 percent, Bangkok Bank collected 0.83 percent, Bangkok Expressway spiked 1.41 percent, Kasikornbank dipped 0.25 percent, Krung Thai Bank fell 0.51 percent, PTT gained 0.51 percent, PTT Exploration and Production skidded 1.06 percent, PTT Global Chemical dropped 1.10 percent and Siam Concrete advanced 1.54 percent. The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as stocks moved higher again on Monday, extending recent gains to fresh record closing highs. The Dow gained 142.79 points or 0.7 percent to 20,412.16, while the NASDAQ rose 29.83 points or 0.5 percent to 5,736.96 and the S&P added 12.15 points or 0.5 percent to 2,328.15.
The markets continued to benefit from recent upward momentum spurred by optimism about reduced corporate taxes under President Donald Trump. Traders were also likely looking ahead to Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s semi-annual testimony before Congress later this week. Crude oil futures fell Monday amid speculation that robust U.S. production has offset OPEC’s supply cuts. March West Texas Intermediate crude fell 93 cents or 1.7 percent to $52.93 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
