Thai shares close 1.46 percent higher

24 Dec, 2008

Thai shares closed 1.46 percent higher on Tuesday as investors bought back big-cap shares for the year's end, dealers said. The Thai market rose against the regional trend while trading was light as many investors stayed on the sidelines, they said.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index rose 6.32 points to close at 440.40 points while the blue chip SET-50 index added 4.49 points to 309.60. Gainers overwhelmed losers 204 to 91 with 99 issues unchanged on turnover of 2.06 billion shares worth 8.83 billion baht (255.03 million dollars). The Thai baht slipped against the greenback to close at 34.62-63 baht compared to 34.54-55 baht on Monday but it gained against the euro to finish at 48.30-36 baht from 48.58-63 baht.
"The market closed up today, which was rather opposite to the regional trend," said Mayuree Chowvikran, senior vice president at Kim Eng Securities. "Investors just bought back some big-cap shares to window-dress companies' stocks for the year's end." Thailand's top energy firm PTT Plc rose 3.00 baht to close at 171.00 baht while its subsidiary PTT Exploration and Production gained 3.00 to 103.00.
Another leading energy firm, Banpu, also added 4.00 to 216.00. But the country's biggest lender Bangkok Bank lost 2.00 to 69.00 while Siam Commercial Bank edged down 0.50 to 48.00. Kasikorn Bank also slipped 0.50 to 45.50. The kingdom's flagship carrier, Thai Airways, edged down 0.05 to close at 8.00.

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