* Singapore leads regional gainers
* Philippine Dec trade deficit narrows to 6-month low
* Vietnam rises on financials
By Arundhati Dutta
Feb 11 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets rose
on Tuesday, led by Singapore, as new cases of coronavirus in
China fell and investors waited to see how quickly the country's
factories could return to work.
There were 2,478 new cases on the mainland on Monday, down
from 3,062 on the previous day. The death toll, however, soared
to 1,016. "The decline of confirmed and suspected cases in Hubei
province showed China's lockdown may start to bear fruits," OCBC
Treasury Research said in a note.
The virus outbreak is expected to have a devastating impact
on China's growth in the first quarter, pushing policymakers to
adopt measures such as capital injection and tariff exemptions
for materials used for epidemic control to support its economy.
The Singaporean index .STI gained as much as 1%, snapping
two sessions of losses. Financial heavyweights DBS Group
Holdings DBSM.SI and United Overseas Bank UOBH.SI added up
to 1% and 1.7%, respectively.
The Indonesian benchmark .JKSE rose, helped by consumer
stocks. Conglomerate PT Astra International Tbk ASII.JK added
up to 1.6%.
The Malaysian index .KLSE climbed as much as 0.8%. Genting
Malaysia Bhd GENM.KL and Sime Darby Bhd SIME.KL gained more
than 1% each.
Bucking the trend, Philippine shares .PSI edged lower.
Large caps SM Investments SM.PS and Ayala Corp AC.PS shed
between 1% and 1.8%.
Investors appeared to shrug off government data that showed
trade deficit narrowing to a six-month low in December due to a
surge in exports. Shares in Vietnam .VNI gained on financials, with the
Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of
Vietnam BID.HM adding as much as 4.7%.
Thai shares .SETI were little changed.
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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS AT 0436 GMT
STOCK MARKETS
Change on the day
Market Current Previous close Pct Move
Singapore 3186.77 3163.15 0.75
Bangkok 1534.6 1535.24 -0.04
Manila 7423.68 7430.86 -0.10
Jakarta 5960.508 5952.083 0.14
Kuala Lumpur 1550.05 1542.8 0.47
Ho Chi Minh 934.11 930.73 0.36
Change so far in 2020
Market Current End 2019 Pct Move
Singapore 3186.77 3222.83 -1.12
Bangkok 1534.6 1579.84 -2.86
Manila 7423.68 7,815.26 -5.01
Jakarta 5960.508 6,299.54 -5.38
Kuala Lumpur 1550.05 1588.76 -2.44
Ho Chi Minh 934.11 960.99 -2.80