Published on July 16, 2005

Timing is everything, says bourse executive

The Stock Exchange of Thailand and the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI), the second-tier market, are likely to miss their combined target to list 100 firms this year due mainly to sluggish stock-market sentiment.

Sixty companies were originally expect to list on the SET and the rest on the MAI, according to Sopawadee Lertmanaschai, executive vice president of the SET.

“We might miss our target this year as companies have to select suitable times to list on the stock market. These companies may have to delay their listing plans, but this is not a concern: they can list on the market next year,” she said.

The SET is reviewing 30 companies for listing and has approved no more than eight of them. There are also more companies in the process of applying to list, but they are unlikely to go public this year.

Vichate Tantiwanich, president of the MAI, said that the smaller bourse would also miss its target of listing 40 companies. No more than 35 companies have submitted applications to list on the MAI this year.

Securities and Exchange Commission procedures for considering listing applications take a long time because there are many filings to deal with, he said. Nonetheless, he predicted that the number of newly listed firms on the MAI would not be less than the 13 that went public last year.

The MAI will maintain its five-year target to have at least 500 listed firms with total market capitalisation of Bt250 billion, compared to the current Bt25 billion.

Chotisak Asapaviriya, president of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand, said his bank had joined hands with the MAI and Board of Investment to boost lending to SMEs. The two organisations will also try to convince SMEs to list on the MAI.

The bank has already approved Bt600 million in credit to 20 SMEs in the food, processed farm goods, alternative energy, automobile and fashion sectors.

The bank will help customers who have been granted loans and privileges from the BOI to list on the MAI this year.

Siriporn Chanjindamanee

The Nation

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