EMERGING MARKETS-Asian stocks swing higher after Democrats sweep U.S. Senate

* Graphic: World FX rates http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
* Malaysia stocks down after 2,593 new coronavirus cases
* Thailand plans COVID-19 relief measures, stocks rise
* Asian currencies pare early losses against struggling
greenback

By Anushka Trivedi
Jan 7 (Reuters) - Asian stocks rallied on Thursday on the
prospects of a large fiscal stimulus in the United States after
Democrats won control of the Senate, while Malaysian shares
slipped 1% as COVID-19 cases rose as at a record pace in the
country.
India's benchmark index .NSEI opened at an all-time high,
while equities in South Korea .KS11 surged 2.6% to break above
the 3,000 handle again. Indonesia .JKSE , Singapore .STI , and
Taiwan shares .TWII all climbed more than 1%.
Democrat victories in two Georgia races handed them control
of the Senate, making it easier for incoming U.S. President Joe
Biden to push his reforms which includes higher fiscal spending.
Hopes that a big borrowing and big spending Democrat
administration would drive growth boosted risk sentiment and
spurred gains in global equities, outweighing concerns about
chaotic protests in Washington. MKTS/GLOB
"ASEAN markets are likewise expected to relish this
positivity with the anticipated unleashing of further fiscal
injections by the incoming U.S. administration enthusing assets
sensitive to economic growth," said Jingyi Pan, a
Singapore-based market strategist with financial services firm
IG.
Thailand's bourse .SETI took heart from authorities
planning more relief measures to ease the impact of a new
coronavirus outbreak. Meanwhile, the Kuala Lumpur index .KLSE was the sole
decliner after adding 2,593 coronavirus cases to its tally by
Wednesday, the director general of health said https://twitter.com/DGHisham/status/1346810347152310277,
further straining the country's healthcare system.
Several local https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/healthcare-system-breaking-point-targeted-mco-may-be-needed-%E2%80%94-health-dg
media https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/01/06/sabah-mulls-lockdown-after-xmas-new-year-gatherings-cause-surge-in-infections/?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=2fbbf238ace11f4d29b3b1848678241cc2c1a223-1609995058-0-Aca4SjQbsx5dl_Bc47aTP9avbrocnAaCTOr6B0veQZnflIfYyQHZsqmZQT8qwt1L9GuJTcKa-EWh2mgxA17VlewJ1jW3Y4CMMKmqnS3cc1qh6n4caa2BEGcOYg8_q42d9l7BC8L_k9AUh_wmtZYktLEsO7CpoTbvBkpPol8C4htuSPz2h8pnw9KYZ-3_U1je4UIrokT0i5CDxGf3jIV0ADwcSjNmFDHkf-M7YIk1fuEX3H7-BmoBYz6hil4wDLtDIUbhsmKGfS6V1mpvDg8wSKHBN12QixJx0EY8UZrg907_UdJcVjcl7DoSN0tiGmv-gqp3EuWHXrViOVYck5shFGxe0WlrNnv6kl1HHYzhXwVP0PRYiVEvIPjei_Pa8w6BOHcXI9XJVBt5OdkplvZXKMLZwuWEMi_uJhHGkcXcgXaOFpH8P3oYUM37xuoLQ3IIQt3Qa6ODu8S9Z68tTQ9q6CKUHZ-YShxiHcGgzJBRlLrmnTjpEOD9bPZ00kXreR5TdA
outlets reported the Malaysian government was mulling targeted
lockdowns in parts of the country after New Year celebrations
increased caseload, including Sabah, one of the worst hit by the
pandemic.
Travel stocks led declines on the Malaysian benchmark, while
heavyweight latex glove makers surged.
Asian currencies pared early losses to trade flat to lower
against a sudued dollar.
Improving risk appetite and bets that a growing U.S. trade
and budget deficit would weigh on the greenback pressured the
currency. FRX/
The Taiwan dollar TWD=TP jumped 1.5%, while the Malaysian
ringgit MYR=MY recouped declines of 0.4% to trade flat. The
Singapore dollar SGD= and the Indonesian rupiah IDR= eased
slightly.

HIGHLIGHTS
** Top losers on Malaysia's index: Genting Malaysia Bhd
GENM.KL , down 5% and Genting Bhd GENT.Kl , down 4.2% while
Supermax Corp SUPM.KL and Hartalega Holdings HTHB.Kl top the
index
** Singapore's 10-year benchmark yield is down 1 basis
points at 0.924%
** Top gainers on the Jakarta stock index .JKSE include
Natura City Developments Tbk PT CITY.JK up 34.3% and PT
IndoSterling Technomedia Tbk TECH.JK up 24.9%

Asia stock indexes and currencies at
0510 GMT
COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY % FX YTD % INDEX STOCKS DAILY % STOCKS YTD %
Japan JPY= -0.09 +0.11 .N225 1.50 0.06
China CNY=CFXS +0.12 +1.11 .SSEC 0.37 2.61
India INR=IN -0.01 -0.06 .NSEI 0.29 1.47
Indonesia IDR= -0.14 +1.01 .JKSE 1.21 2.68
Malaysia MYR= -0.07 +0.22 .KLSE -0.46 -2.61
Philippines PHP= -0.01 -0.05 .PSI 1.02 -0.28
S.Korea KRW=KFTC -0.18 -0.13 .KS11 2.37 5.75
Singapore SGD= -0.07 +0.18 .STI 1.49 2.17
Taiwan TWD=TP +1.53 +1.80 .TWII 1.74 3.48
Thailand THB=TH -0.20 +0.10 .SETI 1.36 4.37