Bangkok - Thai shares tumbled 2.95 per cent Thursday after the MSCI Emerging Markets Index downgraded 10 Blue Chip stocks, brokers said.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index ended at 696.72 points, down 21.18 points or 2.95 per cent.

Analysts said the main reason for the tumble was decision by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Emerging Markets Index to downgrade their forecasts for 10 leading listed companies, most of them in the energy sector.

"A key factor in the MSCI downgrade was a court decision last month to shelve several massive petrochemical projects at Mab Ta Phut Industrial park on the Eastern Seaboard on account of pollution concerns," said Chaiyod Jiwangkul, an analyst at Country Group Securities. (dpa)