1) Thai stock market overview
Thailand’s SET Index closed at 1,623.38 points, decreased 13.91 points or 0.85% with a trading value of 64 billion baht. The analyst stated that the Thai stock market traded lower due to gloomy sentiment in the region and a profit taking after the release of 3Q22 earnings results that were mostly in line with the market expectations. Meanwhile, Thai baht started to show signs of slowing down, resulting in lower fund inflows. The analyst pointed out that the issue with More Return Public Company Limited had negative sentiment on mid and small-cap stocks.
2) Emerging Asia may rebound as China’s Covid-19 reopening drives regional recovery
Emerging Asian markets may see a rebound as China’s expected reopening after nearly three years of Covid-19 curbs is set to lead a recovery in its own economy and others in the region, according to Morgan Stanley on Sunday.
The reports released on Sunday warned that the global economy will only grow by 2.2% in 2023, which is far lower than the 2.7% growth forecast by the International Monetary Fund.
It was estimated that China’s GDP would grow by 5% in 2023, which would be significantly higher than the average growth expected for emerging markets (3.7%), and far lower than the average growth expected in the Group of 10 developed countries (0.3%).
While the economies of the United Kingdom and the Eurozone are expected to enter recession next year, Morgan Stanley predicts that the United States may just avoid this fate because of its robust job market.
Morgan Stanley forecasts a sharp divide between developed economies “in or near recession” and emerging economies “recovering somewhat” next year, although an overall global recovery will likely remain difficult.
3) Thai central bank expects economy to return to Pre-Covid level in early 2023
The Bank of Thailand stated that the monetary policy would be “measured and gradual” to support economic recovery.
The Thai central bank’s governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput said at a seminar on Monday, stating that the Thai economy was recovering gradually, despite a global slowdown. The governor expected Thailand to return to pre-Covid level by early next year and affirmed his previous forecast that the economy growth would be 3.3% this year and 3.8% next year.
The governor said that the Thai economy would continue to recover gradually, supported by consumption and tourism, while stating that the monetary policy would ensure a smooth take-off.
Mr. Suthiwartnarueput noted that the weak baht was due to a strong dollar, which is an external factor. Meanwhile, the central bank affirmed that the rate hike would not need to be aggressive, but was ready to make adjustments, depending on conditions.
4) Binance’s Zhao says crypto space requires stable and clear regulations
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, told a gathering of G20 leaders at the summit in Bali that a new industry of cryptocurrency exchanges required stable and clear regulations.
“We’re in a new industry, we’ve seen in the past week, things go crazy in the industry,” he said. “We do need some regulations, we do need to do this properly, we do need to do this in a stable way.” His comments came after his peers and partners in crypto space outlined steps to deal with the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX.
After a week, customers pulled assets from FTX, and FTX filed for bankruptcy. Binance abandoned the rescue offer.
