COOLING US INFLATION BOOSTS RISK APPETITE

Asian stocks tracked gains on Wall Street as cooling US inflation backed the case for more Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts and worries about tech valuations eased.

- NUNTAWUN POLKUAMDEE NAREERAT WIRIYAPONG

The Thai market rebounded on Friday as concerns over border clashes subsided after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stepped in as a mediator. Both Thailand and Cambodia expressed a willingness to deescalate tension and cease fire.

The SET index moved in a tight range of 1,243.94 and 1,273.40 points this week, before closing yesterday at 1,252.19, down 0.2% from the previous week, with daily turnover averaging 34.05 billion baht.

Brokerage firms were net buyers of 1.26 billion baht, followed by foreign investors at 1.18 billion. Institutional investors were net sellers of 2.05 billion baht, followed by retail investors at 395.36 million.

NEWSMAKERS: US inflation slowed more than expected to 2.7% in November from 3% in September, giving investors hope that inflationary pressures may be cooling enough for US monetary policy to be eased more than anticipated.

■ The Bank of Japan hiked interest rates to a 30-year high of 0.75% on Friday, the first increase since January, as it said the economy had shown signs of improvement.

■ The European Central Bank left its key deposit rate unchanged at 2% for a fourth consecutive meeting as growth remains resilient, while inflation continues to hover around the 2% target.

■ The Bank of England cut interest rates from 4% to 3.75%, a three-year low, as inflation cooled sharply to 3.2% in November. Analysts said concerns about weak economic growth and rising unemployment outweighed worries about inflation.