BANGKOK, 17 January 2013 The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) has declared 2012 a successful year, saying the Bourse’s average trading value was the highest in the ASEAN region, with aims to open up more stock trading accounts this year. SET President Jarumporn Chotikasatian said the SET was very successful last year, with the average trade value of 32.3 billion baht per day, the highest in nearly 17 years; while its market capitalization marked an all-time high in the SET’s history.
The president also expects the Thai economy to stabilize and grow continuously this year, thanks to the huge amount of government’s spending on infrastructure and investments from the private sector, as well as domestic consumption. However, the economic recession in Europe is likely to drag on, whereas the US economy is still unstable. He has, therefore, warned investors to keep a close eye on the situation.
The SET is planning to increase the number of its stock- trading accounts by at least 96,000, and futures-trading accounts by 22,000 in 2013. It will also focus more on newcomers and young investors, as well as online traders, given that 50 percent of all the tradings last year were conducted through the internet.
