* Philippine stocks set for fifth straight loss
* Jardine Strategic drops to over three year low
* Indonesian president to open up economy - report
By Shreya Mariam Job
Oct 3 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets fell on
Thursday, with Philippines losing the most after the United
States opened a new front in its global trade tussle by slapping
tariffs on European imports.
The United States said on Wednesday it would slap 10%
tariffs on European-made Airbus AIR.PA planes and 25% duties
on French wine, Scotch and Irish whiskies, and cheese from
across the continent as punishment for illegal EU aircraft
subsidies.
The move threatens to spark a tit-for-tat transatlantic
trade war amid the Sino-U.S. trade dispute that has slowed
global growth, with overnight data showing that hiring by U.S.
private employers had slowed in September.
Philippine stocks .PSI slumped to a 4-1/2-month trough,
joining a global sell-off as real estate stocks languished.
Shares of SM Prime Holdings SMPH.PS and Ayala Land Inc
ALI.PS dipped 2.1% and 3.7%, putting the country's benchmark
index on track for its fifth consecutive session of losses.
Trade-reliant Singapore stocks .STI dropped 0.8%, with
industrials and financials weighing on the index.
Shares of Jardine Strategic Holdings JSH.SI fell as much
as 2.9% to their lowest in over three years.
Investors await Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS) rate
decision due at its semi-annual meeting this month.
"MAS will ease policy at its upcoming semi-annual meeting in
October; the only question is how large the easing move will be
and what form it will take," Societe Generale analysts said in a
note.
Malaysian stocks .KLSE fell, pulled lower by financials,
with Public Bank Bhd PUBM.KL shedding 1.6%.
Indonesian stocks .JKSE pared some losses after hitting
their lowest since May 23 earlier in the session.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he'll introduce
sweeping changes to labor rules by the end of the year and open
up more sectors of the economy to foreign investment, delivering
on some of the major reforms investors have been demanding,
Bloomberg reported. However, weak broader market sentiment kept stocks in the
red, with Astra International Tbk Pt ASII.JK and Bank Mandiri
BMRI.JK slipping 1.2% and 1.9%, respectively.
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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS at 0352 GMT
Change on the day
Market Current Previous close Pct Move
Singapore 3077.7 3103.45 -0.83
Bangkok 1609.37 1613.64 -0.26
Manila 7519.79 7610.68 -1.19
Jakarta 6021.938 6055.425 -0.55
Kuala Lumpur 1566.63 1574.9 -0.53
Ho Chi Minh 984.71 991.19 -0.65
Change so far in 2019
Market Current End 2018 Pct Move
Singapore 3077.7 3068.76 0.29
Bangkok 1609.37 1563.88 2.91
Manila 7519.79 7,466.02 0.72
Jakarta 6021.938 6,194.50 -2.79
Kuala Lumpur 1566.63 1690.58 -7.33
Ho Chi Minh 984.71 892.54 10.33