Thai shares eked out slim gains on Wednesday as investors bought banking shares in a dividend reporting season while stocks in Indonesia and most regional bourses slid as concerns over opaque policy moves in China kept investors on edge. After a range-bound session, Bangkok's SET index ended up 0.06 percent at 1,304.62. Gainers included Siam Commercial Bank, which announced an attractive dividend early in the week.
Shares of Advanced Info Service and Shin Corporation erased earlier gains amid a call by anti-government protesters to boycott businesses linked to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Trading volume at the Thai bourse was relatively weak after political violence in downtown Bangkok almost every night this week.
Singapore's Straits Times Index fell for a second session, ending down 0.5 percent at its lowest close in almost one week, while Jakarta's composite index shed 1 percent, a third session of fall, to a near two-week low. Malaysia retreated 0.6 percent, led by an 8.5 percent drop in shares of budget carrier AirAsia X Bhd after announcing a net loss in its fourth quarter. Fund flows in the region were mixed, with Malaysia recording net foreign sales 50 million ringgit ($15.24 million) and the Philippines reporting a net foreign buying of 212.9 million peso ($4.77 million), stock exchange data showed.