BANGKOK, Aug 12 — Southeast Asian stocks were mixed today, with Singapore’s stronger-than-expected second quarter GDP growth keeping the benchmark in positive territory amid selective buying in large- and medium-caps, including Keppel Corp. Ltd.
Market players broadly focussed on quarterly earnings of Southeast Asian firms while trading volume remained light as regional bourses reopened after holidays.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index was up 0.2 per cent at 3,234.89 points after the city-state said its economy grew at a better-than-expected pace in the second quarter and the government raised its outlook for the year.
Indonesia’s stock market resumed trade after being shut last week, with the Jakarta Composite Index down 0.7 per cent.
The fall partly reflected the previous week’s losses in most of its regional peers, which is yet to be priced into the composite index, according to Edwin Sebayang, head of research at MNC Securities.
Indonesia’s biggest firm by market value PT Astra International Tbk dropped 1.5 per cent after a brokerage earnings downgrade.
Malaysia’s main index gained 0.3 per cent, reversing a modest loss last week, while the Philippines, which was last week’s worst performer, gained 0.6 per cent. Vietnam’s VN Index was down 0.06 per cent, with several blue chips losing ground.
Among regional gainers, shares in Singapore-listed oilfield service firm Ezion Holdings Ltd surged after strong results while Philippine-listed Ayala Land rose following higher quarterly earnings released last week.
The Thai stock market was shut for a public holiday, and will re-open tomorrow.
Most Asian shares rose today and Chinese stocks surged to a one-month high as investors took heart from last week’s upbeat data from the world’s second-biggest economy, but Japan’s Nikkei fell to a six-week low after softer second-quarter GDP. — Reuters
