THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Investors need clarity on state funding for infrastructure mega-projects, says Kbank’s private bank

 Investors need clarity on state funding for infrastructure mega-projects, says Kbank’s private bank

Investors want the incoming government to stick to its investment plans for infrastructure mega-projects and release budget plans for them as soon as possible, said the head of private banking at Kasikornbank (KBank).

The government’s planned infrastructure projects will draw in further foreign investment into the country, which is seen as an attractive and low-risk investment market, Siriporn Suwannagarn, managing director and financial advisory head of Kasikornbank's Private Banking Group, said at a press conference on Friday.
Foreign and domestic investors would like plans for the next government budget to be released as soon as possible, she said. This way, investors will be able to adjust their investment strategies to optimise returns on sectors that will benefit from new government policies.
"For instance, if the government announces its plans to roll out more Pracharat policies directed to the grassroots economy, then the agricultural sector will stand to benefit. On the other hand, if the government increases its focus on the Eastern Economic Corridor, then there may be further investment opportunities in the manufacturing sector," she said.
Growing foreign investment flows into the country along with a strong current account surplus have strengthened the baht in recent months, creating a key opportunity for Thais to invest abroad.
However, Siriporn cautioned investors on the high level of stock market volatility around the world as the global economy has entered a late-growth cycle.
"Global markets have been overreacting to the 'good' financial news as the US Federal Reserve has signalled lower interest rates and the US and China agreed to resume trade talks at the G20 meeting," she said.
The Thai stock market has been part of this trend. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index at the end of June showed an increase of 6.8 per cent over the previous month, marking it as the best performer in Asia. It is up 10.6 per cent from the end of 2018 to 1,730.34 points.
The average daily trading value on the SET and the Market for Alternative Investment (mai) in June was Bt60.53 billion (US$1.95 billion), up 3.1 per cent from the preceding month.
However, the US policy rate has not been lowered yet and the US tariffs on Chinese goods have not been reduced, Siriporn said.
If these factors worsen, investors should readjust their portfolios and invest less in equities, focusing more on assets such as gold and bonds, she said.

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