The SET index in Thailand dropped 12.33 points, or 0.78%, to 1,576.85 early Friday morning, in line with regional markets ahead of the U.S. job openings report that is expected to guide the Federal Reserve’s November monetary decision.
According to experts polled by Dow Jones, payrolls in the United States are likely to rise by 275,000 in September, while unemployment is forecast to remain unchanged at 3.7%.
Looking ahead to next week, investors are awaiting the release of the U.S. inflation report on next Wednesday.
Pi Securities suggests investing in large-cap stocks like PTTEP, refineries (BCP, SPRC, TOP), retailers (BJC, CRC, CPALL, DOHOME, GLOBAL, HMPRO), banks (BBL, KBANK, SCB), travel and leisure (AOT, CENTEL, ERW, MINT, SPA), and healthcare (BBL, KBANK, SCB) (BCH, CHG).
Top pick stocks are ADVANC and PTTEP.
Pi has given ADVANC a “BUY” rating and set a target price of THB246.0, predicting an 8.5% increase in share price should the company successfully complete its acquisition of 3BB. PTTEP’s target price, meanwhile, is set at THB174.0, reflecting the OPEC and its allies’ decision to cut more output will drive prices up.
