Thai share prices closed flat on Wednesday as investors opted to stay on the sidelines to await final outcomes from elections in the United States, dealers said.
They said trading was also sluggish on a slump in some major Asian markets, such as Japan and Hong Kong. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index edged up 0.03 points to 738.93, as the blue chip SET50 index slipped 0.22 points at 517.26.
Losers outnumbered gainers 179 to 147, with 117 stocks unchanged on turnover of 4.4 billion shares worth 17.4 billion baht (474 million dollars). The Thai baht closed at a seven-year high of 36.69-70 to the dollar, little moved from Tuesday's 36.70-75, and at 46.94-99 to the euro from 46.80-88.
"Investors were cautious and took a wait-and-see stance to see full results from the US elections," said Thanomsak Saharatchai, a senior market analyst at Capital Nomura Securities. Asian stock markets fretted Wednesday as a Democratic victory in the US elections sparked speculation that President George W. Bush's Republican defeat could lead to policy deadlock in the world's largest economy.
Apart from the US factor, Thanomsak said buying sentiment was weak due to the sluggish performance across Asia. Thailand's largest energy firm PTT Plc was unchanged at 228.00 baht and its subsidiary PTT Exploration and Production was also flat at 107.00.
The kingdom's top lender Bangkok Bank fell 1.00 to 121.00 and the third-largest lender Kasikorn Bank also lost 1.00 to 71.50. Flag carrier Thai Airways International slipped 0.50 to 48.25, and Thailand's top mobile operator, Advanced Info Service (AIS), fell 2.50 to 91.50.