The Thai stock market has experienced a mild decline over consecutive trading days, dropping close to 4 points or 0.3 percent. Currently, the Stock Exchange of Thailand rests just above the 1,375-point mark, but there are indications it may stabilize on Thursday.
Internationally, indications for the Asian markets point to a slight upward trajectory, although there is some inconsistency in the forecasts for interest rates. European markets were on the rise, US exchanges exhibited a mixed but largely unchanged performance, and it's predicted the Asian markets will strike a balance between the two.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand or SET ended with a marginal decline on Wednesday, with losses in the food, finance, consumption, property and technology sectors counterbalanced by support from the resource and industrial firms.
On that day, the index decreased by 3.77 points or 0.27 percent to conclude at 1,375.69 post trade between 1,374.26 and 1,384.17. Over 14 billion shares were traded, amounting to 41.843 billion baht. The day ended with 377 decliners, 115 gainers, and 167 stocks remaining unchanged.
Active stocks varied, with Advanced Info gaining 0.49 percent and Thailand Airport dropping 0.38 percent, and other stocks showing mixed results as well. Several stayed consistent, including True Corporation, TTB Bank, Kasikornbank, Banpu and B. Grimm.
The major averages from Wall Street offer scant direction. The stock markets opened a bit lower on Wednesday, then saw a modest increase, ending the day on a mixed note.
The Dow concluded with a small decrease of 43.10 points or 0.11 percent, finishing at 39,127.14, while NASDAQ rose by 37.01 points or 0.23 percent to close at 16,277.46 and the S&P 500 increased mildly by 5.68 points or 0.11 percent to finish at 5,211.49.
An unexpected deceleration in the growth of the US service sector in March, according to a report from the Institute for Supply Management, contributed to this early rebound on Wall Street.
Retaining interest rates also led to initial unease on Wall Street, given the stronger than anticipated private sector job growth in the US in March, as reported by payroll processor ADP.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, while speaking at Stanford University, reiterated that the central bank isn't rushing to lower interest rates.
Meanwhile, oil prices saw a surge on Wednesday after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) concluded their meeting without modifying their production policy. Consequently, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.28 or 0.33 percent, settling at $85.43 per barrel.
