1) Thai stock market overview
Thailand’s SET Index closed at 1,521.18 points, decreased 15.46 points or 1.01% with a trading value of 45 billion baht. The analyst stated that the Thai stock market edged lower due to an instability in political situation after the parliament failed to elect a prime minister this week, resulting in most of the investor types deciding to withdraw investment from Thailand. The analyst expected the decline to continue tomorrow.
2) Japan cuts growth forecast amid slowing global demand
The Japanese government trimmed its economic growth forecast for the current fiscal year ending in March 2024 to 1.3% on Thursday, from 1.5% in January, due to the impact of slowing global demand on exports.
The expectations come ahead of the Bank of Japan’s crucial policy meeting next week, where the board will reveal its quarterly forecasts and review the economy’s progress toward the long-term inflation target of 2%.
The government predicts that overall consumer inflation, which does not exclude any items, will reach 2.6% this fiscal year, which is higher than the 1.7% predicted in January and surpasses the Bank of Japan’s 2% target.
Also, the government forecasts 1.9% inflation in fiscal 2024.
3) TSMC’s 2Q net profit drops 23% as global demand for chips slows down
Profit of the world’s largest and advanced chipmaker plunged in the second quarter as demand for consumer electronics around the globe continues to drop.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) reported a net profit of NT$181.8 billion in the second quarter, compared to NT$237 billion in the same period of last year (-23.3%), but still above consensus for NT$165 billion from Refinitiv.
Meanwhile, revenue came in at NT$480.84 billion, compared to NT$534 billion reported last year and NT$478 billion expected.
TSMC flourished during the global Covid-19 pandemic, seeing high demand for laptops and smartphones, especially during the lockdown. However, those demands started to subside as the world recovered from the crisis and people were going out more.
High inflation also forces consumers to cut back on buying discretionary products, leading to a drop in prices for chips.
