* U.S. 10-year bond yields climb to 1.7630%
* Malaysian bonds to stay in FTSE Russell bond index
* China bonds to be included in bond index from this year
March 30 (Reuters) - Asia's emerging currencies buckled
under a firmer dollar on Tuesday after U.S. bond yields set a
new 14-month high, while stock markets in Indonesia and the
Philippines fell around 1%.
Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasuries US10YT=RR climbed as
much as 1.7630% in late Asian trade, bolstering the greenback,
which also garnered support from worries of a hedge fund default
that roiled global banking stocks on Monday.
"There are still a number of investors who are concerned
about a further spike in UST," Morgan Stanley analysts said in a
note, adding that U.S. economic data surprises could push yields
higher.
"Hence, these investors continue to position defensively."
Stocks in Jakarta .JKSE led declines in Asia, falling
1.2%. Yields on its benchmark 10-year bonds ID10YT=RR rose
3.69 basis points to 6.793%, while the rupiah IDR= dipped.
Indonesian bonds are favoured by foreign investors for their
relatively high yields.
Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year Malaysian bonds MY10YT=RR
fell 4.3 basis points to 3.292% - their lowest in more than two
weeks - after FTSE Russell removed the country from its
watchlist and officially retained it in its flagship government
bond index.
"This is a much welcome relief, and will allow investors to
re-focus on other external drivers," HSBC said.
However, the ringgit MYR= slipped 0.1% and stocks .KLSE
were down 0.2%.
FTSE Russell also confirmed that Chinese sovereign bonds
would be included in its bond index starting this year, setting
the stage for billions in inflows. HSBC said that with roughly $2.5 trillion tracking the FTSE
World Government Bond index, some $130 billion in inflows could
be expected, given China's eventual 5.25% weighting.
Also on investors radar, U.S. President Joe Biden is
expected to outline how he would pay for a $3 trillion to $4
trillion infrastructure proposal on Wednesday. Stocks in India, where markets reopened after a public
holiday on Monday, jumped nearly 2% boosted by banks after a
steel conglomerate completed an insolvency process, allowing
lenders to recover some of their bad loans. .BO
HIGHLIGHTS:
** Malaysia's AirAsia posts record quarterly loss; shares
fall ** Philippines raises $500 mln via discount Samurai bond -
IFR ** Bank Mayapada Internasional Tbk PT, Pollux Properti
Indonesia Tbk PT POLL.JK and Bank QNB Indonesia Tbk PT
BKSW.JK led losses in Indonesia
Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0631 GMT
COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS
DAILY % YTD % DAILY % YTD %
Japan JPY= -0.25 -6.19 .N225 0.16 7.25
China CNY=CFXS +0.02 -0.60 .SSEC 0.37 -0.72
India INR=IN -0.65 +0.11 .NSEI 1.88 5.71
Indonesia IDR= -0.07 -2.84 .JKSE -1.18 1.92
Malaysia MYR= -0.10 -2.97 .KLSE -0.18 -1.16
Philippines PHP= +0.01 -0.86 .PSI -0.94 -8.32
S.Korea KRW=KFTC -0.17 -4.18 .KS11 1.12 6.84
Singapore SGD= +0.02 -1.97 .STI 0.72 12.47
Taiwan TWD=TP +0.13 -0.12 .TWII 0.48 12.37
Thailand THB=TH -0.19 -4.04 .SETI 0.56 9.90