* Trump back in the White House; dollar weakens
* Rupiah hits strongest level since Sept 2
* Indonesia stocks hit two-week highs
* Graphic: Foreign flows into Asian stocks https://tmsnrt.rs/3lKhL5I
Oct 6 (Reuters) - Indonesia led gains among emerging markets
in Asia on Tuesday after its parliament passed a contentious
jobs bill earlier than expected, which could cut onerous
regulations and boost investment for its coronavirus-hit
economy.
Currency and stock markets across the region were broadly
higher as U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White
House after three nights in hospital with the coronavirus.
Markets were now betting that his release may help fast-track a
U.S. stimulus package. Stocks in Jakarta .JKSE climbed as much as 1.3% to its
highest in more than two weeks, while the rupiah IDR= also
rose around 1% to its strongest level in over a month.
OCBC analysts said the market would see the passing of the
bill in Indonesia as a "positive development".
"While the positive economic impact will likely only be felt
over time, as it helps to improve Indonesia's competitiveness in
attracting FDI (foreign direct investment), the passage shows
that the government can still undertake significant reforms
despite the challenging circumstances," said Wellian Wiranto, an
economist at OCBC.
Indonesia's parliament passed the so-called "Job Creation"
bill late on Monday at a critical time for the country.
By Monday's close, Indonesian stocks had fallen over 7%
since the end of August and the rupiah had eased more than 1% as
Southeast Asia's largest economy struggled with the fallout of
the coronavirus curbs and as some foreign investors shunned
Indonesian assets due to concerns about central bank
independence. Asia's emerging currencies rose, led by the Taiwanese
dollar, as the greenback fell after Trump's release from
hospital prompted investors to favour riskier assets.
Markets in China remain closed until Thursday for a public
holiday.
Elsewhere in the region, Taiwan's stock market .TWII
extended gains made on Monday when a private survey pointed to a
strong recovery in its manufacturing sector in September, driven
by solid export orders. It was up 1%.
But Philippine shares .PSI fell 1.3% as inflation slowed
to a four-month low in September in the latest sign of
underlying weakness in the economy. The Philippine central bank said on Tuesday current monetary
policy was sufficient to support the economy, having left rates
unchanged last week, but businesses continue to struggle with
restrictions in place in parts of the country.
HIGHLIGHTS:
** Indonesian 3-year benchmark yields down 0.5 basis points
to 5.34%
** Global investors warn Indonesia that jobs bill puts
forests at risk ** The top index losers in the Philippines are Puregold
Price Club Inc PGOLD.PS , Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc AEV.PS
and LT Group Inc LTG.PS
Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0337 GMT
COUNTRY FX FX FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS
RIC DAILY % YTD % DAILY % YTD %
Japan JPY= +0.07 +2.80 .N225 0.49 -0.98
China CNY=CFXS - +2.42 .SSEC - 5.51
India INR=IN +0.00 -2.61 .NSEI 0.00 -5.47
Indonesia IDR= +0.68 -5.51 .JKSE 0.89 -20.58
Malaysia MYR= +0.05 -1.42 .KLSE 0.22 -4.59
Philippines PHP= +0.11 +4.72 .PSI -1.30 -24.99
S.Korea KRW=KFTC +0.13 -0.47 .KS11 0.66 8.00
Singapore SGD= +0.13 -1.02 .STI 0.55 -21.47
Taiwan TWD=TP +0.96 +4.73 .TWII 1.02 5.66
Thailand THB=TH +0.45 -4.35 .SETI 0.60 -20.85