SE Asia Stocks-Indonesian shares at 6-week high ahead of c.bank meeting; Singapore up

* BI expected to cut benchmark rate by 25 bps - Reuters poll * Indonesia set to rise for 10th straight session * MAS chief says Singapore economy may recover in few quarters - Bloomberg By Sameer Manekar Oct 24 (Reuters) - Indonesian stocks hit a six-week high on Thursday ahead of the central bank's key rate decision, while Singapore shares rose on hopes of a revival in economic growth in the city-state. Indonesian stocks rose as much as 0.8% and were on track for a 10th straight session of gains. Bank Indonesia (BI) is expected to cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points later on Thursday, according to a Reuters poll, as the central bank looks to shore up an economy struggling to maintain its growth trajectory. "BI will probably cut (its) policy rate again given external resilience, waning growth momentum and lacklustre credit growth," Mizuho Bank said in a note to clients. Financials were the biggest gainers on the index, with Bank Central Asia advanced 0.7% to a record high, while Bank Mandiri gained 2.5%. Singapore's Straits Times index added 0.9%, after posting its biggest decline in two weeks in the previous session. Monetary Authority of Singapore chief Ravi Menon in an interview https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-24/singapore-slowdown-may-be-nearing-an-end-mas-chief-menon-says to Bloomberg said the city-state may be a few quarters away from a recovery as the current cycle bottoms out toward the end of the year and into next year. He also added that the MAS had a fair amount of space on the monetary policy front without having to think about quantitative easing. The central bank had eased its policy for the first time in three years earlier this month after it narrowly dodged recession in the third quarter. Financials and industrials were the biggest gainers, with heavyweights DBS Group Holdings and Jardine Matheson Holdings rising 1.3% and 2.8%, respectively. Thailand's benchmark traded sideways, but climbed as much as 0.4% to a one-week high in early trade. Markets were closed on Wednesday for a holiday. Index heavyweight PTT Exploration and Production PCL gained 3% and Electricity Generating PCL added 3.2%. Philippine stocks and the Vietnam bourse were marginally up, while Malaysian shares inched lower. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS AT 0436 GMT Market Current Previous close Pct Move Singapore 3170.09 3144.28 0.82 Bangkok 1631.03 1631.46 -0.03 Manila 7947.48 7933.76 0.17 Jakarta 6305.233 6257.806 0.76 Kuala Lumpur 1567.2 1568.79 -0.10 Ho Chi Minh 989.78 987.79 0.20 Change so far in 2019 Market Current End 2018 Pct Move Singapore 3170.09 3068.76 3.30 Bangkok 1631.03 1563.88 4.29 Manila 7947.48 7,466.02 6.45 Jakarta 6305.233 6,194.50 1.79 Kuala Lumpur 1567.2 1690.58 -7.30 Ho Chi Minh 989.78 892.54 10.89 (Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru Editing by Jacqueline Wong)