The Thai stock market is on a growth trajectory, having experienced a surge of approximately 20 points or 1.5 percent over the past two consecutive sessions. The Stock Exchange of Thailand is currently just below the 1,385-point mark and shows potential for further increment on Monday.
The bright global forecast, influenced by buoyant U.S. employment figures, gives the Asian markets a dash of optimism. However, this optimism stands to somewhat dim the plans for an interest rate hike in the upcoming month. As the European markets stabilize, the U.S. bourses are experiencing a rise and it is expected that Asian markets will follow suit.
On Friday, the SET made significant gains thanks to triumphant performances in the food, finance, industrial, resource, services, and technology sectors. On that day, the index rose by 16.12 points or by 1.18 percent to achieve a closing at 1,384.08, after fluctuating between 1,375.37 and 1,386.67. Worth 45.183 billion baht, a total of 26.903 billion shares were transacted, with 327 rise and 153 decline in stocks, while 174 stocks remained constant.
Active sector performers include Advanced Info with a 0.45 percent rise, Thailand Airport with an increase of 1.62 percent, and companies like Asset World and PTT Exploration and Production both recording advances of 1.00 percent each. Conversely, firms like Bangkok Expressway and BTS Group experienced losses of 0.68 percent and 0.85 percent, respectively.
Shares listed on Wall Street are looking upbeat, following a surge seen in major averages on Friday, which accomplished record closing highs for both Dow and the S&P 500.
Strong reactions to positive earnings results from tech giant Meta Platforms, parent company of Facebook, and e-commerce behemoth Amazon also boosted shares. Employment data from the Labor Department indicating markedly robust job growth in January also added to Wall Street's enthusiastic reaction.
This employment data diminishes the likelihood of an interest rate cut in March, yet a thriving jobs market is considered favorable for the stock market and the overall economy.
Meanwhile, oil prices faced a sharp decline on Friday, partly due to an unexpected increase in U.S. non-farm payroll employment in January, thus diminishing early rate cut hopes by the Federal Reserve.
Lastly, on the local front, Thailand expects to release consumer price data for January today, with overall inflation projected to decrease by 0.82 percent year-on-year, a small decline from December's 0.83 percent drop. However, Core CPI is anticipated to increase annually by 0.57 percent, slightly down from 0.58 percent in the previous month.
