During the morning session, a stock analyst at Krungsri Securities said he expected the index to fall between 1,395 and 1,400, before rebounding, owing to the lack of new positive sentiment to stimulate investment, as investors hold off on trading to keep an eye out for developments in the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting.

“Investors expect FOMC to maintain the interest rate at 0-0.25 per cent and unlimited quantitative easing,” the analyst said. “We also have to keep an eye on the US Federal Reserve’s announcement on the signs of a US economic recovery after the lockdown relaxation.”

The analyst added that the index will be under pressure from tight valuation as the index’s price-to-earnings ratio is more than 20 times.

The top 10 stocks with the highest trade values today were MINT, CPF, SCB, BAM, KBANK, PTT, BBL, STA, PTTEP and AOT.

As of 4.30pm, crude oil had dropped by $1.03 or 2.65 per cent to $37.91 per barrel, while gold rose by $3.90 or 0.23 per cent to $1,725.80 per ounce.

Global indices, meanwhile, had a mixed day:

Japan’s Nikkei Index closed at 23,124.95, up 33.92 points, or 0.15 per cent.

China’s Shanghai SE Composite Index closed at 2,943.75, down 12.36 points, or 0.42 per cent, while Shenzhen SE Component Index closed at 11,335.86, up 51.62 points, or 0.46 per cent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed at 25,049.73, down 7.49 points, or 0.030 per cent.

South Korea’s KOSPI Index closed at 2,195.69, up 6.77 points, or 0.31 per cent.

Taiwan’s TAIEX Index closed at 11,720.16, up 83.05 points, or 0.71 per cent.