Tariff timeout provides hope

President Donald Trump's order for a 90-day suspension of US reciprocal tariffs for countries that do not retaliate, including Thailand, has prompted a positive response from investors as global stocks surged in a relief rally.

- NAREERAT WIRIYAPONG PHUSADEE ARUNMAS LAMONPHET APISITNIRAN

Trump stated on Truth Social that tariffs would be delayed for more than 75 countries, signalling Washington's willingness to negotiate with cooperative partners and refrain from immediate retaliatory measures.

This policy was backed by the US Commerce Department, US Treasury Department and the US Trade Representative, aiming to create space for dialogue.

According to KGI Securities (Thailand), the tariff for countries willing to negotiate is only 10% for the next three months.

CLASH OF THE TITANS

However, Trump raised the tariff rate on China to 125%, compared with 104% the day before, indicating the clash between the two economic giants will continue, said Rakpong Chaisuparakul, senior vice-president of KGI.

"This issue will continue to spur global market volatility. Investors should continue to monitor how the US-China conflict pans out and how Thailand negotiates with the Trump administration," he said.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index jumped in line with other Asian bourses, rising 4.45% or nearly 50 points to finish at 1,136.58 points by midday, with trading value of 50.9 billion baht.

Shares of Delta Electronics (Thailand) led gains with a 15% increase to 69 baht, followed by an 8.28% rise for Airports of Thailand (AOT) to 39.25 baht and a 7.55% surge of Krungthai Bank (KTB) to 22.80 baht.

Incorporating a 90-day delay to 36% tariffs as well as the chance for negotiations, KGI projects Thai GDP growth to slow to 2%, down from a previous outlook of 2.6%.