Tuesday, 07 July 2015 17:13
BANGKOK: Thai shares snapped a six-day losing streak on Tuesday as bargain-hunting emerged in oversold banking stocks while the much-anticipated appointment of a new central bank governor further buoyed market sentiment.
The military-led government selected Veerathai Santiprabhob, a former International Monetary Fund economist, to be the governor of the Bank of Thailand for five years, starting Oct. 1, replacing Prasarn Trairatvorakul, who ends his tenure at the end of September.
The Thai SET index extended gains after the appointment, closing up 0.7 percent on the day after a drop on Monday to a near-seven-month closing low. Shares of Kasikornbank climbed 1.7 percent.
Foreign investors bought Thai shares worth a net 543 million baht ($ 16.00 million) after unloading a combined 2.9 billion baht ($ 85.44 million) over the past two trading days, stock exchange data and Thomson Reuters data showed.
Other markets in Southeast Asa ended little changed.
Indexes in Indonesia and Malaysia extended declines for a second day. The Philippines marked a third straight loss after data showed the country’s annual inflation in June slowed more than expected.
Singapore’s key index rose after a range-bound session, with Vietnam hitting the highest close since September 2014.
Asian shares fell and European stock and bond markets steadied on Tuesday before a euro zone summit to discuss the Greek debt crisis while a further fall in Chinese shares reminded investors of other dark clouds on the horizon.
