Thai Shares Tipped To End Losing Streak On Friday

(RTTNews) - The Thai stock market has moved lower in three straight sessions, slipping almost 20 points or 1.3 percent along the way. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now sits just above the 1,520-point plateau although it figures to stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on progress to end the debt ceiling situation in the United States. The European and U.S. markets mere up and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The SET finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the tech, energy, food and financial stocks.

For the day, the index dropped 12.14 points or 0.79 percent to finish at 1,521.40 after trading between 1.521.31 and 1,536.76.

Among the actives, Advanced Info weakened 0.47 percent, while Asset World tanked 2.03 percent, Banpu slid 0.61 percent, B. Grimm plummeted 4.67 percent, BTS Group slumped 0.70 percent, CP All Public was down 0.78 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods shed 0.50 percent, Energy Absolute plunged 6.54 percent, Gulf tumbled 3.59 percent, Kasikornbank fell 0.39 percent, Krung Thai Bank collected 0.53 percent, Krung Thai Card retreated 1.47 percent, PTT Exploration and Production dipped 0.36 percent, PTT Global Chemical declined 1.42 percent, SCG Packaging lost 0.64 percent, Siam Commercial Bank added 0.48 percent, Siam Concrete climbed 1.25 percent, Thai Oil climbed 1.16 percent, True Corporation surrendered 3.65 percent, TTB Bank soared 2.53 percent and Bangkok Bank, PTT Oil & Retail, PTT, Bangkok Dusit Medical, Thailand Airport and Bangkok Expressway were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is solid as the major averages quickly shook off a sluggish start and moved firmly into the green.

The Dow climbed 153.30 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 33,061.57, while the NASDAQ surged 165.70 points or 1.28 percent to end at 13,100.98 and the S&P 500 advanced 41.19 points or 0.99 percent to close at 4,221.02.

The strength that emerged on Wall Street came after the House voted Wednesday night to approve the bill raising the U.S. debt ceiling.

The legislation now heads to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he hopes lawmakers can work quickly and bring the bill to the president's desk "as soon as possible."

In economic news, payroll processor ADP said private sector employment in the U.S. jumped more than expected in May. Also, the Labor Department noted a slight increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week.

Crude oil prices rose sharply Thursday on hopes OPEC will announce a cut in production. Oil prices were also supported by a weak U.S. dollar and the passage of the debt ceiling bill. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for July ended higher by $2.01 or 3 percent at $70.10 per barrel.