The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index plunged below the 1,600 point threshold during intra-day trading hours marred by concerns over third-quarter earnings of large listed companies and dejected economic outlook internally and externally.
Thailand’s benchmark stock index fell to Friday’s lowest at 1,593.88 points and experienced two straight days of equity sell-off. It closed at 1,593.28 in turnover of 76.69 billion baht.
Large-cap stocks experienced a slump, with GPSC shares shedding gains by 3.76% to close at 89.50 baht. SCC shares plummeted by 3.01% to 354 baht, while KBANK shares continued sinking by 1.09% to 136.50 baht after Thursday’s steep plunge triggered by the bank’s lower projection of net interest margins and higher bad loan ratio.
An equity sell-off is a reflection of ebbing investor confidence on domestic investment and economic outlook, said Trinity Securities executive director Nuttachart Mekmasin.
Concerns looming over the Sino-US trade dispute, the Brexit saga and lower GDP growth for Thailand’s economy in 2020 by the International Monetary Fund has also fanned a negative sentiment for investors, said ASL Securities in its note.