SET rejigs some ceiling, floor limits

The trading range for stocks priced under Bt0.10 will remain at 100 per cent of the previous closing price and for stocks priced over Bt1 at 30 per cent, Patareeya Benjapholchai, president of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, said in a statement yesterday.

The SET will also introduce ceiling and floor limits for stocks on their trading debut in order to reduce price volatility, she said.

Under the new rules effective on December 2, stocks on the first day of trade can trade up to three times the initial public offering price but not less than a half of the IPO price, she said.

At present, prices of stocks on the first day of trade can move either up or down without any limit.

Meanwhile, Chanitr Charnchainarong, president of the Market for Alternative Investment, said 49 companies listed on MAI posted a combined net profit of Bt2.26 billion for the first nine months of this year, up 56 per cent from the corresponding period a year ago.

Their ninemonth sales were up 12 per cent to Bt34.53 billion.

Unique Mining Services was the top earner with a net profit of Bt393 million, followed by Goldfine Manufacturer at Bt260 million, Unimitr Engineering at Bt203 million, LV Technologies at Bt178 million and Demco at Bt173 million.

In the third quarter, their total net profit surged 35 per cent from the same quarter last year to Bt807 million, though their overall sales rose only 13 per cent to Bt11.89 billion.

"Amid the global financial crisis, the cumulative net profit of companies listed on the MAI that jumped 56 per cent from the same period last year reflected their management and costefficient ability. However, media, financial and IT operators have felt the pinch from the economic slowdown and local political uncertainty," he said.