Krungsri Securities (KSS) expected Thailand’s SET Index to move within the range of 1,395-1,415 points amid a slowdown in foreign flows as the year is drawing to a close despite a positive sign from lower PCE that could indicate the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates as soon as March next year.
Still, the analyst expected investment in domestic savings funds such as RMF, SSF and TESG to support the Thai stock market while recommending a selective-buy play.
Prices in the U.S. fell in November for the first time in more than three and a half years, boosting expectations from capital markets for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve as soon as March next year.
The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, Fed’s favourite gauge to measure inflation, fell 0.1% in November, bringing the annual rise in inflation further below 3%. It was the first monthly decline since April 2020.
In November, food prices dropped 0.1% and energy prices fell 2.7%, according to the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis on Friday. On an annualized basis, PCE price index rose 2.6% after a 2.9% rise in October. It was below 2.8% YoY increase polled by Reuters.
Denmark’s Maersk is expecting to resume its operations in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden soon after the U.S. announced that it was launching a multinational operation to protect commerce shippers in the Red Sea.
Last week, major shippers said that they are rerouting their operations in the Red Sea due to the attack from Yemen’s Houthis. The unrest and uncertainty had made the freight index rise sharply.
