* Philippines, Vietnam & Singapore fall 1%
* Bank Indonesia holds benchmark rate steady as expected
* Thailand exports fall 4.54% y/y in Oct, below forecast
By Arundhati Dutta
Nov 21 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets took a
beating on Thursday on worries that the U.S. bills backing Hong
Kong protesters could strain Sino-U.S relations and further
delay a possible "phase one" trade deal.
On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed two
bills backing pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong which
President Donald Trump is expected to sign, a move that has
irked China. Further weighing on sentiment was a report that the trade
agreement could be delayed as Beijing presses for more extensive
tariff rollbacks, and the Trump administration counters with
heightened demands of its own. Indonesian shares .JKSE shed 0.6%, as the central bank's
move to cut the reserve requirement ratio by banks failed to
lift sentiment, while the key interest rate was kept steady, as
expected. "With inflation expected to remain within target going into
2020, Bank Indonesia may resume its easing cycle in early 2020
to give growth momentum an added boost, given the possibility of
an escalation in global headwinds," analysts at ING said in a
note.
Trade-sensitive Singapore stocks .STI closed at an over
three-week low.
While the index pared a small portion of losses on news that
the city-state's economy grew better than the government
expected in the third quarter, selling resumed later in the day,
pushing the index 1.2% lower. Thai shares .SETI slid as data showed that exports had
dropped for a third straight month in October, and had missed
estimates predicted in a Reuters poll. Top losers were communication services stocks, with Advanced
Info Service Pcl ADVANC.BK and Total Access Communication Pcl
DTAC.BK shedding 3.5% and 5%, respectively.
Vietnamese equities .VNI tumbled 1.3%, dragged by real
estate stocks.
Philippines stocks .PSI had fallen as much as nearly 2% to
a six-week low, but recouped some losses to close 1% lower.
Malaysian stocks .KLSE fell 0.6%, with index heavyweight
Tenaga Nasional TENA.KL losing 1.3%.
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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS
Change on the day
Market Current Previous close Pct Move
Singapore 3192.21 3229.78 -1.16
Bangkok 1591.86 1596.83 -0.31
Manila 7818.89 7898.06 -1.00
Jakarta 6117.364 6155.109 -0.61
Kuala Lumpur 1592.19 1601.14 -0.56
Ho Chi Minh 987.89 1000.56 -1.27
Change so far in 2019
Market Current End 2018 Pct Move
Singapore 3192.21 3068.76 4.02
Bangkok 1591.86 1563.88 1.79
Manila 7818.89 7,466.02 4.73
Jakarta 6117.364 6,194.50 -1.25
Kuala Lumpur 1592.19 1690.58 -5.82
Ho Chi Minh 987.89 892.54 10.68