The changes in triggering the Circuit Breaker are as follows:

– The first Circuit Breaker will stop trading for 30 minutes when the index fell over 8 per cent, instead of 10 per cent.

– The second Circuit Breaker will stop trading for another 30 minutes when the index fell by more than 15 per cent.

– The third Circuit Breaker will stop trading for 60 minutes when the index fell by over 20 per cent.

“When trading resumes after SET pushed the third Circuit Breaker, the market will not stop trading regardless of whether the drop continues until close,” he said.

“This measure will be effective for the short term from March 18 until June 30 this year.”

He added that the committee also approved to adjust the stock ceiling-floor to plus or minus 15 per cent from the previous 30 per cent to lessen volatility.

The central bank also injected money into the foreign exchange market to enhance liquidity of US dollars in the market, she said.

Her announcement came as foreign investors made a net-sell of Thai bonds worth of Bt72.5 billion year to date as of March 16. Investors also dumped Thai shares, sending the Stock Exchange of Thailand Index into a downward spiral of more than 30 per cent since early January. The baht currency has weakened as well, today passing the threshold of 32 per dollar.

The latest Thai central bank action is in line with global central banks, which are rescuing markets via bond purchases and rate cuts to prevent economies sliding into a recession due to the severe impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The US Federal Reserve also cut its benchmark rates to 0.25 per cent.

Some analysts believe the Thai central bank will cut its benchmark rate to 0.75 per cent from the current 1 per cent at a meeting scheduled for March 25.

The buying price of a gold bar was Bt22,500 per baht weight and selling price Bt22,600 at 4.49pm, while gold ornaments cost Bt22,088.12 and Bt23,100, respectively.

The prices decreased from the morning when a gold bar cost Bt22,600 to buy and Bt22,700 to sell, with gold ornaments costing Bt22,194.24 and Bt23,200, respectively.

Comex futures gold contracts to be delivered in April dropped by US$30.20 to $1,486.50 (Bt47,569.80) per ounce at Monday’s close due to uncertainty following the impact on the global economy by the Covid-19 coronavirus.

A stock analyst at Tisco Securities said the SET Index had dropped more than 30 per cent from the beginning of this year, while his counterpart at Krungsri Securities expected the SET Index to move between 1,020 and 1,030 today as investors remained under pressure from the global economic uncertainties and Covid-19.

They explained that although the US Federal Reserve had made an emergency interest rate cut by one percentage point to almost zero and used a “quantitative easing” bond purchase programme to tackle the Covid-19 crisis, investors still sold their stocks to reduce risks, resulting in negative sentiment for investment.

The top ten stocks with the highest trade values today were BAM , PTT, CPALL, GULF, AOT, ADVANC, PTTEP, SCC, CPF, and GPSC.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei Index closed at 17,011.53, up 9.49 points, or 0.056 per cent.

China’s Shanghai SE Composite Index closed at 2,779.64, down 9.61 points, or 0.34 per cent, while Shenzhen SE Component Index closed at 10,202.75, down 50.53 points, or 0.49 per cent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed at 23,263.73, up 200.16 points, or 0.87 per cent.

South Korea’s KOSPI Index closed at 1,672.44, down 42.42 points, or 2.47 per cent.

Taiwan’s TAIEX Index closed at 9,439.63, down 278.14 points, or 2.86 per cent.

Bank president Pisit Serewiwattana said the move is aimed at supporting and enabling the bank’s customers and entrepreneurs to continue international trade and investment with lower operating costs amid the current global and Thai economic uncertainty sparked by the Covid-19 outbreak.

In addition, Exim Thailand has in place a debt suspension scheme for exporters.

Under the scheme, the bank is allowing suspension of principal repayment and interest for six months for customers with long-term and short-term credit lines and affected by the Covid-19 spread, and expanded insurance protection for exporters after shipment or those in the process of shipment to China.

The bank is also offering credit programmes with special interest rates lower than the MLR and MRR for entrepreneurs of all sectors, such as the Exim Investment and Production Efficiency Enhancement Credit Scheme, which provides long-term loans to encourage business people to purchase and improve their machinery and equipment or factories in order to lift production efficiency, with a special interest rate of 2 per cent per annum in the first two years.

Prices dropped as markets were concerned that a global economic recession would emerge again in this dire Covid-19 situation as a number of governments worldwide decided to lock down cities to tackle the virus.

IHS Markit said the amount of oil in the market might turn to oversupply of between 800,000-1.3 million barrels per day – greater than the oversupply situation at the end of 2015 – after Saudi Arabia and Russia announced they would increase production capacity in April this year, leading to a price war.

US President Donald Trump’s action suspending travel from Europe and the United Kingdom, coupled with the US Federal Reserve’s move to cut the short term interest rate by 1 percentage point to almost zero and go in for quantitative easing bond purchases with a limit of US$700 billion (Bt22.2 trillion), would pressure oil demand.

Benzene fuel prices dropped lower than those of Dubai crude oil as benzene demand tended to come under pressure after many governments decided to lock down cities.

Diesel fuel prices dropped lower than those of Dubai crude as the market was concerned that diesel demand would drop due to an economic recession cause by the coronavirus spread.

Buying price of a bar of gold was Bt22,600 per baht weight and selling price was Bt22,700. Buying price of gold ornaments was Bt22,194.24 per baht weight and selling price Bt23,200.

The prices dropped from Monday’s close (March 16) when a gold bar cost Bt23,100 to buy and Bt23,200 to sell, while gold ornaments cost Bt22,679.36 to buy and Bt23,700 to sell.

Gold contracts in COMEX futures to be delivered in April dropped by US$30.20 to $1,486.50 per ounce on Monday’s close after rising the previous day.

Gold price dropped over 5 per cent in the previous week, the biggest drop when compared week on week in three years due to uncertainty following the impact on the global economy caused by Covid-19 outbreak.

The price of gold also did not gain positive sentiment from the weakening dollar after the US Federal Reserve made an interest rate cut of one percentage point to 0.00-0.25 per cent and used the “quantitative easing” bond purchase programme with a limit of US$700 to relieve the impact of Covid-19 outbreak on the US economy.

A stock analyst at Krungsri Securities expected the SET Index would slide between 1,020 and 1,030 before rebounding, as investors are still under pressure following the economic recession due to the worldwide spread of Covid-19.

“Currently, around 170,000 people have been infected by this virus, while around 6,500 people have died,” the stock analyst said.

The analyst explained that although the US Federal Reserve had made an emergency interest rate cut by one percentage point to almost zero and used “quantitative easing” bond purchase programme with a limit of US$700 to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak, investors still sold their stocks to reduce risks in the stock market, resulting in negative sentiment for investment.

“However, we expect the index to rebound from various measures issued by countries worldwide to support the economy, which would be positive sentiment for the index,” the stock analyst said.

The analyst recommended three groups of stocks for investors:

● Defensive stocks that pay high dividends, such as ADVANC, INTUCH and TTW.

● Retail stocks, which gained buying power after the government returned the electricity metre insurance for a total of Bt30 billion, such as CPALL, HMPRO, and BJC.

● Financial stocks, which gained benefit from interest rate cut trends, such as MTC, SAWAD, and KTC.

The largest cryptocurrency was down 7.5% to $5,026 as of 12:45 p.m. in New York, after dropping as low as $4,442, according to Bloomberg data. It has slumped about 55% from the $10,500 high for the year set Feb. 13. Other alt coins tumbled, with Ether down about 12% and Litecoin off more than 8% on Monday.

Monday’s rout extends the recent crypto sell-off into a second week and comes as stock gauges globally plunge into bear markets amid the coronavirus crisis. The outbreak has spread to more than 3,000 Americans and has ground activity in Europe to a virtual standstill.

“Despite the massive sell-off, bitcoin’s price has still failed to attract investors. This is because the price is likely to drop even more,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade. “For me, anything below $3,500 is very attractive. It is likely that the price may drop to that level.”

Technical gauges suggests that bitcoin appears primed to retest the recent lows of $4,000. If that level is broken, a retest of late 2018 and early 2019 lows is seen possible.

One technical indicator, the GTI Global Strength Indicator, is already in oversold territory, having fallen below the 30 threshold that signifies that condition. However, it is still above the level marked during 2018 and 2019 lows, indicating there may be more pain to come.

The S&P 500 sank 12%, extending losses as Trump said the economy could fall into a recession. Equities opened sharply lower after central bank stimulus around the world failed to mollify investors worried about the damage the coronavirus is inflicting on economies.

The negative superlatives for American stocks are piling up. The S&P wiped out its gain in 2019 and is now down almost 30% from its all-time high. The Dow Jones industrial average lost almost 13%, falling 3,000 points to close at two-year low. The Russell 2000 had its worst day on record, losing more than 14%.

“This is different. The thing that is scarier about it is you’ve never been in a scenario where you shut down the entire economy,” said Steve Chiavarone, a portfolio manager with Federated Investors. “You get a sense in your stomach that we don’t know how to price this and that markets could fall more.”

While the Fed cut rates toward zero and stepped up bond buying, investors continued to clamor for a massive spending package to offset the pain from closures of schools, restaurants, cinemas and sporting events. Companies around the world have scaled back activity to accommodate government demands to limit social interaction.

Here are some of Monday’s key moves across major assets:

– All 11 groups in the S&P 500 fell, with eight of them down at least 10%.

– The Dow Jones Industrial Average’s tumble from its record reached 30%.

– Brent crude dipped below $30 a barrel for the first time since 2016.

– Treasury yields retreated across the curve with moves most pronounced on the short end.

– Shares tumbled in Asia and Europe, where the continent is now reporting more new virus cases each day than China did at its peak as more countries lock down.

– The yen surged, the Swiss franc rallied and the dollar fluctuated.

– Gold failed again to capitalize on the rush to havens and reversed an earlier gain to tumble.

– Bonds declined across most of Europe, where a measure of market stress hit levels not seen since the 2011-2012 euro crisis.

The Fed and other central banks have dramatically stepped up efforts to stabilize capital markets and liquidity, yet the moves have so far failed to boost sentiment or improve the rapidly deteriorating global economic outlook. An International Monetary Fund pledge to mobilize its $1 trillion lending capacity also had little impact in markets.

The problem is, bad news keeps stacking up. The New York Fed’s regional gauge of factory activity plunged. Ryanair Holdings said Monday it will ground most of its European aircraft while a consultant said the pandemic will bankrupt most airlines worldwide before June unless governments and the industry step in. Nike Inc. and Apple Inc. announced mass store closings.

“In normal circumstances, a large policy response like this would put a floor under risk assets and support a recovery,” Jason Daw, a strategist at Societe Generale in Singapore, wrote in a note. “However, the size of the growth shock is becoming exponential and markets are rightfully questioning what else monetary policy can do and discounting its effectiveness in mitigating coronavirus-induced downside risks.”

The yen rebounded from Friday’s plunge after the Fed and five counterparts said they would deploy foreign-exchange swap lines. Australian equities fell almost 10%, the most since 1992, even after the Reserve Bank of Australia said it stood ready to buy bonds for the first time – an announcement that sent yields tumbling. New Zealand’s currency slumped after an emergency rate cut by the country’s central bank.

Meanwhile, China reported Monday that output and retail sales tumbled in the past two months.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

– The S&P 500 fell 11.98% as of 4 p.m. in New York.

– The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 12.93%

– The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 4.9%, paring a drop that reached 10%.

– The MSCI Emerging Market Index declined 6.3%.

– The MSCI Asia Pacific Index decreased 3.7%.

Currencies

– The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%.

– The euro gained 0.5% to $1.1162.

– The Japanese yen strengthened 1.8% to 105.94 per dollar.

Bonds

– The yield on two-year Treasurys sank 14 basis points to 0.35%.

– The yield on 10-year Treasurys declined 22 basis points to 0.73%.

– The yield on 30-year Treasurys declined 22 basis points to 1.31%.

– Germany’s 10-year yield climbed seven basis points to -0.47%.

Commodities

– West Texas Intermediate crude fell 9.2% to $29.05 a barrel.

– Gold weakened 4.3% to $1,463.30 an ounce.

– Iron ore sank 2.5% to $86.10 per metric ton.