Thailand’s SET Index closed at 1,369.92 points, increased 6.67 points or 0.49% with a trading value of 37.51 billion baht. The analyst stated that the Thai stock market traded sideways, as there were the purchase of power plant stocks and stocks with positive 1Q24 earnings such as shipping stocks. Investors were keeping their eyes on the announcement of employment figures from the US coming tonight, as well as the situation in the Middle East.
The analyst expected the market to trade sideways next week, while the movement depended on stocks with positive 1Q24 earnings reports.
Thailand’s commerce ministry reported a 0.19% year-on-year increase in the country’s consumer price index (CPI) for April. This marks a significant improvement from the 0.47% year-on-year decline recorded in the previous month.
The data surpassed expectations, as a Reuters poll had predicted a 0.25% decrease in the CPI for April. Additionally, the core CPI for April, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, saw a 0.37% increase.
The Thai Commerce Ministry expected inflation in May to be 1.0%-1.5%, while noting that inflation should be positive for the rest of the year due to high energy prices. Prices are moving into a target range of 1-3%, according to the Commerce Ministry.
Investment pledges to Thailand were up 31% in the first quarter of this year when compared to the same period a year earlier, the Board of Investment said Thursday.
The total value of investment applications rose to 228 billion baht ($6.2 billion) in the three months ending in March, it said, with more than half coming from foreign investors.
The top five industrial groups with the highest investment value included electronics and electrical appliances (THB 77.19 billion), automotives and components (THB 21.32 billion), petrochemicals and chemicals (THB 17.67 billion), digital (THB 17.49 billion), and agriculture and food processing (THB 13.27 billion).
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) continued to expand, as there were 460 projects applying the pledges, an increase of 130% year-on-year, with an investment value of THB 169.32 billion, an increase of 16% year-on-year. The top five countries/economic areas with the highest value were Singapore (THB 42.53 billion), China (THB 34.67 billion), Hong Kong (THB 26.57 billion), Taiwan (THB 19.96 billion), and Australia (THB 17.24 billion).
