SE Asia Stocks-Investors bide time ahead of Trump-Xi meeting
* Indonesia set to snap three quarterly gains * Philippines up for fourth straight quarter By Shreya Mariam Job June 28 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets traded in a tight range on Friday as investors laid off heavy bets on the last day of the quarter and ahead of a key trade meeting between leaders of the world's top two economies. U.S. President Donald Trump has agreed to no preconditions for his high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit this weekend and is maintaining his threat to impose new tariffs on Chinese goods, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Thursday. This comes after the South China Morning Post reported on Thursday, citing sources, that Washington and Beijing had agreed to a tentative truce in their trade dispute that would delay new U.S. tariffs. "For now, we are reduced to headline-watching ahead of the Xi-Trump meeting, with markets reactive to stray reports on purported Xi-Trump outcomes," OCBC said in a note. Philippine shares were the top losers in Southeast Asia, dragged by industrials, but were headed for a fourth straight quarterly gain. SM Investment Corp shed 1.5% on Friday, while JG Summit Holdings Inc dropped 1.9%. Singapore stocks edged lower after a near 1% jump in the previous session, as the central bank considers cutting its economic growth forecast for the year. Recent economic indicators suggest year-on-year economic growth could be weaker in the second quarter than a decade-low 1.2% achieved in the first quarter due to a global slowdown partly caused by trade tensions, central bank chief Ravi Menon said. Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd and Hongkong Land Holdings Ltd dropped 1.2% and 1.1%, respectively. Vietnam shares traded little changed, but were set for a third consecutive monthly drop. Data released earlier showed Vietnam likely posted a trade surplus of $400 million in June, compared to a $1.3 billion deficit in May. Consumer prices rose 2.16% in June from a year earlier, and gross domestic product grew 6.71% in the second quarter, slower than an expansion of 6.82% in the first quarter. Petrovietnam Gas JSC gained 3.8%, while Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp rose 0.2%. Indonesian stocks inched higher with financials supporting the gains, but were headed for their first quarterly fall in four. Bank Central Asia Tbk Pt and Bank Negara Indonesia Tbk Pt climbed 0.6% and 2.5%, respectively. Thai stocks were flat ahead of May trade figures expected later in the day. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS As of 0410 GMT Change on the day Market Current Previous close Pct Move Singapore 3325.12 3328.6 -0.10 Bangkok 1731.8 1731.64 0.01 Manila 8000.54 8057.64 -0.71 Jakarta 6359.44 6352.71 0.11 Kuala Lumpur 1672.88 1672.7 0.01 Ho Chi Minh 943.45 943.11 0.04 Change so far in 2019 Market Current End 2018 Pct Move Singapore 3325.12 3068.76 8.35 Bangkok 1731.8 1563.88 10.74 Manila 8000.54 7,466.02 7.16 Jakarta 6359.44 6,194.50 2.66 Kuala Lumpur 1672.88 1690.58 -1.05 Ho Chi Minh 943.45 892.54 5.70 (Reporting by Shreya Mariam Job in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
