16 long-suspended listed securities began temporary trading on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) yesterday, with two securities marred by controversies registering the most active trading volume and value.
Share prices of Inter Far East Energy Corporation Plc (IFEC) and Energy Earth Plc (EARTH) were the most active, with total trading value registered at 691.53 million baht for IFEC and 382.73 million baht for Energy Earth.
Internal disputes and financial scandals escalated into a crisis for retail shareholders of IFEC, as some members of the company's board continued to block scheduling of a shareholders' meeting, leading investors to take matters into their own hands despite having market regulators in place.
Energy Earth has been rocked by a probe launched by the Securities and Exchange Commission over the facts and the rights of the company's two Indonesian coal mines, as well as a review of the two mines' fair value assessment.
The company also faced another probe into 12 billion baht in loans granted by Krungthai Bank after the coal miner failed to redeem two lots of bills of exchange worth 90 million due in June 2017.
Asiasoft Corporation Plc (AS), Bangkok Union Insurance Plc (BUI) and We Retail Plc (WR) were non-active stocks recording total volume lower than 1 million shares yesterday.
There were only three stocks whose closing prices edged higher: BUI, Bliss-Tel Plc (BLISS) and Professional Waste Technology 1999 Plc (PRO).
The SET has allowed temporary trading of 16 long-suspended listed securities from July 1 to 31 by stock purchase through cash balance accounts.
Temporary trading is available for the 16 listed securities, which have been posted with an SP (suspension) sign for more than three straight months.
Investors will be required to buy these securities through cash balance accounts, meaning they will have to pay the full amount in cash before the securities purchase.
SET president Pakorn Peetathawatchai said the bourse's trade permission is a method of determining the fair price value of these securities based on the investor's viewpoint.
Allowing investors to trade long-suspended securities for a stipulated period is also aimed at alleviating the plight of investors, Mr Pakorn said.
If the 16 listed companies fail to comply with the SET's regulations going forward, they will be de-listed from the bourse, whereby another temporary trading period will be allowed before the de-listing process begins, he said.
Thailand's bourse, meanwhile, continued rallying yesterday after positive US-China trade talks and a rise in oil and commodity prices.
The SET index closed at 1,740.91 points, up 10.57 or 0.6%, in trade worth 68.5 billion baht.