Thai share prices are likely to fall next week on profit-taking after hitting a one-year high as investors welcomed a ruling banning ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra from politics, dealers said on Friday.
"The market will be under pressure due to profit-taking following a rally. Investors will take profits also due to a lack of new leads," said Kanang Duangmanee, an economist at Kasikorn Research Centre.
The Thai market jumped to a one-year high over the past week as investors took heart from a court verdict that barred Thaksin from politics and disbanded his political party due to election law violations.
Thailand's main opposition Democrat Party was acquitted of similar vote fraud charges by a special court. Investors and business leaders hailed the rulings, as they believed the decisions would help ease the political uncertainty, which has gripped Thailand since a coup in September 2006. Market players were also relieved as no violent protests erupted following the verdicts.
But Kanang said political optimism would fade next week and investors would likely lock in profits. For the week to June 1, the Stock Exchange of Thailand composite index rose 34.79 points or 4.83 percent to close at a one-year high of 753.93.Kanang said the market would likely fall to the 740-point level next week.