Thailand’s SET Index closed at 1,435.77 points, decreased 0.83 points or 0.06% with a trading value of 56.56 billion baht. The analyst stated that the Thai stock market traded narrowly, similarly to the regional markets, as investors remained cautious ahead of a potential first rate cut in four years by the US Federal Reserve. Speculation remains over whether the impending rate reduction would amount to 25 or 50 basis points.
The analyst expected the Thai market to face selling pressure resulting from a ‘sell-on-fact’ strategy, while lacking domestic catalysts.
According to the statement made by a senior Lebanese security, explosives were planted by the Israeli Mossad inside 5,000 pagers made by Gold Apollo, a Taipei-based wireless company, which were ordered by Hezbollah months prior to this morning’s detonations.
Hezbollah members have been employing low-tech means i.e., pagers for communication to avoid location tracking. The senior Lebanese security claimed the devices were tampered “at the production level” by Israel’s spy agency. Nine people were killed and the other 3,000 injured so far when such pagers detonated in tandem across Lebanon.
Japan experienced a significant slowdown in export growth in August, with shipments to the U.S. declining for the first time in three years. Additionally, machinery orders unexpectedly shrank in July, signaling challenges for an economy striving to establish a robust recovery.
In August, total exports increased by 5.6% year-on-year, marking the ninth consecutive monthly rise but falling well below market expectations of a 10% increase.
On the import front, the value of imports grew by 2.3% from a year earlier, falling short of the economist’s projection of a 13.4% increase.
U.K. inflation remained stable at 2.2% in August. The consumer price index (CPI) figure aligned with analysts’ forecasts and mirrored the previous month’s reading of 2.2% in July. In May and June, headline CPI was recorded at 2%, matching the target rate set by the Bank of England.
Thailand’s Finance Minister, Pichai Chunhavajira, announced plans on Wednesday to meet with the central bank to discuss revising the inflation target, as the government advocates for a reduction in interest rates.
This initiative, as reported by Reuters, comes after months of the government urging the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to lower the rate from its decade-high of 2.50% to stimulate economic growth amidst the pandemic-induced struggles.
Oil prices are now one of the big concerns for traders and analysts amid slowdown in China and global consumption to the point that Goldman Sachs is expecting to see crude prices dropping to low $60s within the next two years.
Earlier, the International Energy Agency’s September report highlighted a sluggish global oil demand growth of 800,000 barrels per day in the first half of 2024, marking the slowest pace since 2020, with the primary cause of this decline is the decelerating consumption in China.
