Thai Stock Market May Extend Tuesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Thai stock market on Tuesday snapped the four-day winning streak in which it had collected more than 25 points or 1.7 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand now rests just beneath the 1,555-point plateau and the losses may accelerate on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative, with weakness expected especially from the oil and technology stocks ahead of the FOMC rate decision later today. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian markets are predicted to follow that lead.

The SET finished modestly lower on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares and the energy producers.

For the day, the index shed 7.13 points or 0.46 percent to finish at 1,553.18 after trading between 1,551.96 and 1,563.84. Volume was 15.764 billion shares worth 58.698 billion baht. There were 1,040 decliners and 509 gainers, with 618 stocks finishing unchanged.

Among the actives, Advanced Info dropped 1.00 percent, while Thailand Airport fell 0.36 percent, Banpu gained 0.77 percent, Bangkok Dusit Medical tanked 2.77 percent, Bangkok Expressway added 0.58 percent, CP All Public retreated 1.22 percent, Charoen Pokphand Foods dropped 0.99 percent, Energy Absolute rose 0.31 percent, Indorama Ventures plummeted 4.35 percent, IRPC gathered 0.62 percent, Kasikornbank strengthened 1.40 percent, PTT perked 0.73 percent, PTT Exploration and Production jumped 1.89 percent, PTT Global Chemical plunged 2.25 percent, SCG Packaging tumbled 3.27 percent, Siam Commercial Bank declined 1.47 percent, Siam Concrete dipped 0.27 percent, Thai Oil lost 0.50 percent, True Corporation collected 0.44 percent, TTB Bank sank 0.83 percent and Asset World, Bangkok Bank, B. Grimm, BTS Group, Gulf, Krung Thai Bank, Krung Thai Card and PTT Oil & Retail were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened lower on Tuesday and remained in the red throughout the day, ending near session lows.

The Dow tumbled 228.50 points or 0.71 percent to finish at 31,761.54, while the NASDAQ plunged 220.09 points or 1.87 percent to close at 11,562.57 and the S&P 500 dropped 45.79 points or 1.15 percent to end at 3,921.05.

The weakness on Wall Street also came as traders looked ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later today. The Fed is widely expected to announce another 75 basis point rate hike as part of its efforts to combat elevated inflation.

In corporate news, Walmart came under pressure after lowering its guidance for the second quarter and full year due to pricing actions aimed to improve inventory levels. Auto giant General Motors (GM) also moved to the downside after reporting Q2 earnings that missed estimates.

In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department said new home sales pulled back by more than expected in June. Also, the Conference Board said consumer confidence in the U.S. deteriorated by more than expected in of July.

Crude oil prices fell on Tuesday, weighed by an announcement from the Biden administration about more sales from the national oil reserve to fight inflation at the pump. The dollar's rebound from recent losses also contributed the drop in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended lower by $1.72 or 1.8 percent at $94.98 a barrel.

Closer to home, Thailand will provide June numbers for industrial production, current account, retail sales and its coincident index later today. In May, industrial production was down 2.11 percent on year, the current account deficit was $3.7 billion, retail sales spiked an annual 10.7 percent and the coincident index had a score of 128.34.