Asian stocks gain on China optimism, most currencies struggle
Manila stocks gain 0.7%
Thai baht hovering near 30-month high
Indonesian rupiah down 0.5%
By Echha Jain and Aaditya GovindRao
Sept 26 (Reuters) -Most Asian stocks edged higher on Thursday, buoyed by enthusiasm at Beijing's aggressive stimulus package to boost the region's largest economy, while currencies struggled for direction.
Manila stocks .PSI gained 0.7% while equities in Taipei were up 0.4%.
The Indonesian rupiah IDR= and Philippine peso PHP= gave up 0.5% and 0.3% respectively, while the Singapore dollar SGD= gained 0.2%.
On Wednesday the People's Bank of China cut medium-term lending rates to banks, a day after Beijing's wide-ranging policy easing, which also included steps to boost the stock market and support an ailing property sector.
Also aiding sentiment, Bloomberg News reported earlier in the day that China is considering plans to inject capital of up to 1 trillion yuan ($142.46 billion) into its biggest state banks to beef up capacity to support the struggling economy.
Optimism remains broadly intact, said Christopher Wong, a currency strategist at OCBC, especially on talk of the capital injection, although some Asian currencies might see profit-taking after their extended rally.
"The positive combination of hopes of another round of support measures (leading to steady yuan), growth in the region looking well, Fed easing cycle and softer U.S. dollar, should continue to be supportive of Asian FX recovery," Wong added.
Thai baht THB=TH slipped 0.1% but was hovering near a 30-month high hit on Wednesday. The domestic stocks benchmark .SETI, on the other hand, slipped 0.3%.
Boosted by political stability, foreign inflows and strong gold prices, the currency is one of Southeast Asia's top performers this year.
Its sudden rapid gains are hitting exporters' trade competitiveness, prompting growing calls for the Bank of Thailand to intervene, and lower interest rates to protect both exports and tourism.
Saktiandi Supaat, head of Asia forex research at Maybank, said the baht could depreciate a little against the dollar in the near term given the latter's climb back up from more pricing in of U.S. election uncertainty.
Globally, market participants will watch for a slew of U.S. data, such as GDP and jobless claims, along with speeches by Federal Reserve policymakers, including remarks from Chair Jerome Powell, that could furnish clues to the rate outlook.
"The U.S. macro and labour market will be key in forming a view on the soft landing or recession scenario and will have an impact on the pace and magnitude of Fed cuts, and as a result, global central banks' decision-making too," Supaat said.
HIGHLIGHTS:
** Indonesia's July palm oil stocks at 5-year low amid higher biodiesel demand, low output
** Legislation to curb U.S. investment in China is top priority, lawmaker says
** Brazil's Prio 'optimistic' about talks with Sinochem to buy Peregrino oil field stake
($1=7.0195 Chinese yuan renminbi)
Asian stock indexes and currencies at 0352 GMT | ||||||
COUNTRY | FX RIC | FX DAILY % | FX YTD % | INDEX | STOCKS DAILY % | STOCKS YTD % |
Japan | JPY= | -0.13 | -2.68 | .N225 | 2.36 | 15.83 |
China | CNY=CFXS | +0.21 | +1.12 | .SSEC | 0.64 | -2.02 |
India | INR=IN | -0.12 | -0.58 | .NSEI | 0.00 | 19.66 |
Indonesia | IDR= | -0.49 | +1.48 | .JKSE | 0.23 | 6.68 |
Malaysia | MYR= | -0.15 | +11.06 | .KLSE | -0.22 | 14.79 |
Philippines | PHP= | -0.25 | -1.13 | .PSI | 0.70 | 14.94 |
S.Korea | KRW=KFTC | +0.57 | -3.05 | .KS11 | 2.09 | -0.17 |
Singapore | SGD= | +0.16 | +2.46 | .STI | 0.36 | 10.98 |
Taiwan | TWD=TP | +0.00 | -3.47 | .TWII | 0.37 | 27.42 |
Thailand | THB=TH | -0.07 | +4.38 | .SETI | -0.31 | 2.91 |
Graphic: World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
Asian stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Reporting by Echha Jain and Aaditya Govind Rao in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez
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