SET REBOUNDING AFTER A BUMPY APRIL

The Stock Exchange of Thailand was volatile in April, which features a long holiday period.

- TISCO SECURITIES

In the lead-up to the Songkran festival, the SET was hit hard by US President Donald Trump's tariffs announcement, touching its lowest level in years at 1,056.41 points early in the month.

Stock markets worldwide were not spared by the tariff news. On the flipside, the gold price surged past $3,300 per ounce.

After Songkran, the SET stayed volatile but with an uptrend, while the US market declined by more than 5%. Gold continued to climb as it is considered a safe haven during times of high uncertainty, reaching $3,500 before pulling back slightly.

After Thai banks announced better earnings in the first quarter than expected, the SET moved up steadily and closed at its peak for the month at 1,197.26 points, up 3.4% from the month before. Helped by the volatility, average daily turnover edged up 2.3% to 40 billion baht.

Trump's tariffs shocked the world as they proved much higher than expected. However, he soon announced most would be delayed by 90 days. A basic tariff of 10% still applies to most imports, with China a notable exception.

The US tariff on China was pushed up to 145%, while China retaliated with a 125% rate on US imports, essentially nullifying the incentive for trade between the two countries.

The world is watching as these two economic giants negotiate, with exploratory talks scheduled for this weekend in Switzerland. Some other countries plan to negotiate amongst themselves, rather than with the US, aiming to find trade partners to ease the impact of US tariffs.