The stock exchange expands the base of individual investors
Published: November 16, 2023 at 06:45
Thailand’s stock index rose yesterday thanks to stable US inflation numbers for October.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) is preparing to rebalance stock market trading by accelerating the expansion of its retail investor base and disclosing more short-sale transaction information to restore investor confidence.
Foreign traders are increasingly using efficient trading software, allowing them to complete a high volume of trades at faster speeds, SET President Pakorn Pitatawachai said on Wednesday.
He added in a press conference that as a result, the proportion of foreign investors trading in the market increased, while trading among other investor groups decreased.
Transactions by foreign investors accounted for 52% of total trade on the Thai Stock Exchange year-to-date, followed by retail investors at 32%, institutional investors at 8% and brokers at 7.6%, SETSMART data showed. In 2022, the percentages reached 47.4%, 35.6%, 8.4%, and 8.5%, respectively.
Five years ago, foreign investors accounted for 42% of trades, and institutions and brokers accounted for more than 10% of trades.
“Most foreign investors use high-speed trading software that involves a large volume of trade. As a result, their proportion of total trade has increased more than other groups of investors,” Mr. Pakorn said.
“SET intends to increase the proportion of other groups to rebalance and stabilize the market.”
He added that the stock exchange will introduce investors and encourage them to use the SET trading program, which has powerful tools and higher speed compared to foreign trading programs provided through securities companies.
Mr. Pakorn said the SET and the SEC did not notice any unusual short-selling trading volume.
“Short selling transactions in the Thai stock market are still normal and these numbers can be verified every day,” he said.
“The SET will report on short selling trading more often if investors want it.”
Meanwhile, the Thai stock market rose more than 2% on Wednesday, and other Asian markets also rose after the United States reported stable inflation numbers for October.
Economists at Goldman Sachs expect the Federal Reserve to begin cutting interest rates in the fourth quarter of 2024, saying the US economy is stronger than expected. Economists said this helps reduce the risk of recession.
There is only a 15% chance that the US economy will experience a recession in the next 12 months, compared to the previous forecast of 48%, according to analysts.
SET also suspended shares of JKN Global Group after the company reported third-quarter net profit of 19.75 million baht, but the auditor did not provide a conclusion on the financial statements because the company lacks liquidity, the value of debt and asset defaults may decline, and five independent members of the board resigned. Management of the company.
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