1) Thai stock market overview
Thailand’s SET Index closed at 1,638.93 points, decreased 0.52 points or 0.03% with a trading value of 99 billion baht. The analyst stated that the Thai stock market faced profit taking in the afternoon session after moving in a positive territory in the morning that went in the opposite direction of regional markets, dragged by the energy sector after a sharp decline in oil prices. Meanwhile, weakening Thai baht pressured fund flow sentiment as the Dollar Index was close to a record high.
2) CP Group aims to acquire ‘Metro Cash and Carry India’ for $1,000 million
CP Group is placing a non-binding bid of around Rd8,000 crore (approx. $1 billion) for Metro Cash and Carry’s India operations and assets, which are up for sale, according to the report by The Economic Times, citing three industry executives close to the matter.
Reliance Retail also made a bid of around Rs 5,600 crore.
Meanwhile, German parent Metro AG raised concerns about the regulatory environment in India and lobby groups against foreign retail.
3) Japan to allow individual tourists and raise daily entry caps from Sep 7
Japan will allow self-guided travel from all countries and double the number of daily entry quotas from September 7, as it relaxes some of the most stringent Covid-19 border controls among major economies.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that the daily entry cap will be increased from 20,000 to 50,000 beginning September 7. He also stated he intended to relax border restrictions to boost visits from people trying to take advantage of a cheap yen.
4) Japan’s factory output surges in July, exceeding forecasts
Industrial production in Japan unexpectedly rose 1% in July from the previous month, according to official data released on Wednesday, beating analysts’ predictions of a 0.5% decline.
In July, Japanese factories increased output for a second consecutive month thanks to an uptick in motor vehicle production that bodes well for the manufacturing sector and the economy as a whole heading into the third quarter.
Retail sales increased for the fifth consecutive month in July, supporting expectations that Japan will reap the benefits of consumers’ steadfast spending in the current quarter.
