Thai shares closed 0.45 percent lower on Wednesday amid persisting concerns over the global economy, dealers said. They said the Thai bourse fell in line with other regional markets while trading was slow as many investors stayed on the sidelines.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index fell 1.96 points to close at 431.23 points while the blue chip SET-50 index lost 1.92 points to 298.91. Losers led gainers 153 to 136, with 102 stocks unchanged on turnover of 1.81 billion shares worth 7.57 billion baht (216.55 million dollars). The Thai baht was steady against the dollar, closing at 34.94-95 baht from 34.97-98 baht on Tuesday.
The unit strengthened against the euro, finishing at 45.18-20 from 45.35-40. "The index moved narrowly during the day and fell slightly as the market closed," said Chai Chirasevenupraphand, a market strategist at Capital Nomura Securities.
"Concerns over the global economy continued to loom over the market. It was slow today, not much trading," he added. Thailand's top energy firm PTT Plc fell 1.00 baht to 156.00 baht while its subsidiary PTT Exploration and Production slipped 1.50 to 99.50.
Another energy firm, Banpu, lost 6.00 to 216.00. The kingdom's biggest lender, Bangkok Bank, shed 0.50 to 67.50. Kasikorn Bank also edged down 0.50 to 44.00 while Siam Commercial Bank lost 1.00 to 50.00. Top telephone operator Advanced Info Service fell 0.50 to 73.00.