Aggregate net profit of SET-listed companies is estimated to have risen 13.3% year-on-year in 2018, buoyed by how large conglomerates diversified and expanded their business overseas to offset slim growth in the domestic market.
Such business diversification enables listed firms to capture growth opportunities abroad to compensate for lukewarm domestic business growth, said Stock Exchange of Thailand president Pakorn Peetathawatchai.
Some 70% of SET-listed firms responding to the bourse's survey said 40% of total revenue was derived from offshore business operations, mainly in neighbouring countries, Asean countries and northern Asia.
The top-performing sector in terms of net profit growth in 2018 was technology at 40%, followed by industrial at 26%, services at 17%, energy and resources at 15% and finance at 13%.
This contrasted with how the energy sector led net profit gains in 2017 on the strength of high oil prices throughout that year.
SET-listed commercial banks posted a 8.2% rise in their unaudited consolidated net profit for 2018, with most of them setting aside lower impairment charges that cancelled out the impact of waiving digital transaction fees and some recording extra gains on investments.
SET-listed companies have until the end of February to submit their financial statements.
For the Thailand Futures Exchange, the index's trading value currently registers above 50 billion baht per day, a value similar to developed futures markets and higher than the daily turnover logged on the SET.
Mr Pakorn said Thailand's stock market has become the most attractive in Asia, reflected by how the bourse has ranked in the top spot for trading volume in the region for more than five years.
At present, the portion of foreign investors investing in Thailand's stock market is up to roughly 40%, up from 20-30% in the past, while the portion of retail investors has fallen to 40% from 50-60%, with institutional investors taking a 20% share.
The number of SET-listed firms on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index is the highest in the region, considered one of the key factors attracting investment incentives, Mr Pakorn said.
SET-listed firms have also shown good performance and enhanced their corporate governance framework, he said.
Although the benchmark kicked off 2018 with a bang, reaching an all-time high of 1,838.96 points, the rally shortly ran out of steam and the gauge shed 10.8% on the year.
The bearish investment momentum was due to concern over the US-China trade spat and capital flight triggered by the Federal Reserve's continuous rate hikes.
The SET's market capitalisation in 2018 plunged 9.2% to 16 trillion baht from 17.6 trillion a year earlier.
In related news, SCB Securities downgrade its SET index target from 1,900-2,000 points to 1,800 points this year, citing expectations of slower global economic growth and rising geopolitical conflicts worldwide.
