Murders of Vietnamese in upscale Bangkok hotel ‘won’t affect stock market’
The shocking murder-suicide of six Vietnamese at a five-star Bangkok hotel on Tuesday would not affect the sentiment of foreign investors and tourists as the incident was not an act of terror, brokers said on Wednesday.
The brokers pointed out that theStock Exchange of Thailand index rose by 5.75 points to 1,327.06 points – by 0.44 per cent – at 11.01am in morning trade on Thursday.
The bodies of six Vietnamese nationals were found at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel on Tuesday evening.
Police said one of the six apparently poisoned the five others with cyanide before committing suicide in the hotel room.
Kijpon Praipaisalkij, director of the analysis and strategy division of UOBKayHian Securities (Thailand) Plc, said the incident would have no impact on stocks, foreign direct investment (FDI) or on tourism.
He said although most SET-listed hotels saw their share prices drop, it was a short-term phenomenon.
He explained that the gruesome incident was a personal issue and not an act of terror that affected innocent people in large numbers as to be considered a security issue for Thailand.
“It could cause worries in the short term but the case would be solved quickly,” Kijpon said.
A similar view was expressed by Prakit Siriwatanaket, investment strategist and managing director of Merchant Partners Securities Pcl.
He said the murder would only slightly affect investor sentiment, but it would not affect investors’ confidence and tourism.
The incident would have no impact on FDI as the incident was related to a small number of individuals, he added.
