* Philippine index hits lowest since Jan. 2
* Indonesia extends losses for second straight day
* Malaysia's Nov. CPI rises 0.9% year-on-year
By Shruti Sonal
Dec 20 (Reuters) - The Philippine stock market slipped to
its lowest in nearly a year in thin trading on Friday, while its
peers in Southeast Asia held steady as investors waited for
clarity in the Sino-U.S. trade deal.
Philippine shares .PSI fell more than 2% to hit their
lowest level since Jan. 2, hurt by losses in financials and
industrials stocks.
Lenders in the country have come under pressure following
local media reports that the central bank was probing about 10
banks for their ties with Australia's scandal-hit Westpac
Banking Corp WBC.AX .
Another reason for the selloff, according to Richard Laneda,
a senior research manager at COL Financial Group, was markets
trying to align with the FTSE index rebalancing due later in
day. The FTSE Philippines Index was down over 3%.7
BDO Unibank Inc BDO.PS extended losses for the third
straight session, while Security Bank Corp SECB.PS fell about
4%.
"I think the outflow, combined with the lack of buying near
the end of the year, has resulted in a big decline in big index
names," Laneda said.
Meanwhile, the documentation work for the phase-1 trade deal
is going through "a technical, legal scrub" and would be ready
signing in early January, U.S. Treasury Secretary, Steve
Mnuchin, said on Thursday. China on the other hand has announced a list of import
tariff exemptions for six oil and chemical products from the
United States. "Investors are avoiding making big bets ahead of the holiday
season as sentiment has been mixed and amid the progress of U.S.
President Donald Trump's impeachment and simultaneous positive
developments on the interim trade deal", said Nicholas Yon,
equity research analyst at Lim & Tan Securities.
Malaysian equities .KLSE extended losses, dragged down by
industrials and financials. Hong Leong Bank Bhd HLBB.KL was
down 2% and Malayan Banking Bhd MBBM.KL 1.3%.
The country's November consumer price index rose by a
less-than-expected 0.9% because of a fall in prices for clothing
and footwear and lower transport costs, government data showed
on Friday. Trade-sensitive Singapore shares .STI eked out marginal
gains, while Thai .SETI and Indonesian stocks .JKSE dropped.
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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS at 0504 GMT
Change on the day
Market Current Previous close Pct Move
Singapore 3209.97 3207.42 0.08
Bangkok 1571.91 1573.51 -0.10
Manila 7483.24 7653.94 -2.23
Jakarta 6237.478 6249.93 -0.20
Kuala Lumpur 1592.61 1595.72 -0.19
Ho Chi Minh 955.22 952.26 0.31
Change so far in 2019
Market Current End 2018 Pct Move
Singapore 3209.97 3068.76 4.60
Bangkok 1571.91 1563.88 0.51
Manila 7483.24 7,466.02 0.23
Jakarta 6237.478 6,194.50 0.69
Kuala Lumpur 1592.61 1690.58 -5.80
Ho Chi Minh 955.22 892.54 7.02