SE Asia Stocks-Indonesia, Vietnam rise on govt measures to soften virus impact
* Govt stimulus driving Indonesian shares higher - analyst * Vietnam to offer cash to low-income earners hit by virus By Arundhati Dutta April 1 (Reuters) - Indonesia and Vietnam stocks rose on Wednesday as risk appetite was whetted by government measures to cushion the economic impact of the fast-spreading coronavirus, while Singapore shares slipped following sharp gains in the previous session. The Jakarta SE Composite Index climbed as much as 2%, with financials leading the gains. PT Bank Central Asia Tbk and PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk rose more than 4% each. Sebastian Tobing, an equity strategist with Trimegah Sekuritas Indonesia, attributed the rise to the government's stimulus measures. President Joko Widodo declared a public health emergency over the epidemic on Tuesday and announced nearly $25 billion additional spending to counter its impact. The central bank on Tuesday slashed its economic growth outlook for 2020 to 2.3%-2.5% from an earlier estimate of 4.2%-4.6%. Shares in Vietnam advanced as much as 2%, with gains underpinned by financials. Vietnam will offer 28 trillion-30 trillion dong ($1.19 billion to $1.27 billion) in cash to low-income earners hit by the pandemic, the government said on Tuesday. Philippine stocks rose as much as 1.5%, with big cap property developer SM Prime Holdings up 5%. On the downside, China's factory activity showed minimal growth in March after a plunge in the previous month, a private survey showed, indicating that the world's second-largest economy remains under pressure from the pandemic. Singapore stocks lost more than 1%, dragged by blue chips Jardine Matheson Holdings and Jardine Strategic Holdings. Malaysian equities shed up to 1.4%, with heavyweight Tenaga Nasional losing 1.8%. Malaysia's movement restrictions have prevented major daily spikes in coronavirus infections, the government said on Tuesday, but the World Bank warned the trade-reliant country's economy would shrink this year for the first time in more than a decade. Thai shares slipped after Tuesday's 3.5% jump, with financials leading the fall. Thailand's cabinet agreed to triple the number of workers receiving cash handouts to nine million to help cushion the impact of the virus. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS AT 0335 GMT STOCK MARKETS Change on the day Market Current Previous Pct Move close Singapore 2451.52 2481.23 -1.20 Bangkok 1120.54 1125.86 -0.47 Manila 5398.99 5321.23 1.46 Jakarta 4579.999 4538.93 0.90 Kuala Lumpur 1341.68 1350.89 -0.68 Ho Chi Minh 675.49 662.53 1.96 Change so far in 2020 Market Current End 2019 Pct Move Singapore 2451.52 3222.83 -23.93 Bangkok 1120.54 1579.84 -29.07 Manila 5398.99 7,815.26 -30.92 Jakarta 4579.999 6,299.54 -27.30 Kuala Lumpur 1341.68 1588.76 -15.55 Ho Chi Minh 675.49 960.99 -29.71 (Reporting by Arundhati Dutta; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
