MANILA: Philippine and Indonesian shares came off record peaks to trader slightly lower on Monday, while Malaysia climbed to a near three-year high, supported by gains in financials. The Philippine Stock Exchange PSEI Index rose as much as 0.4 percent to a fresh high of 9,078.37, before reversing its course. It has added 5.6 percent so far this year after a 3.7 percent gain in 2017. The market has gone up quite significantly for the last several weeks and it has been observed that above the 10,000 level there has been some selling pressure,” said Manny Cruz from Asiasec Equities Inc, Manila. Telecoms were the top gainers with PLDT Inc rising as much as 6.5 percent to a nine-week high, while real estate and industrial stocks were among the biggest losers. Ayala Land dropped as much as 2.8 percent, while SM Investment fell as much as 2.5 percent. The Jakarta SE Composite Index climbed up to 0.4 percent to a new high of 6,686.347, before erasing the gains to trade slightly lower.
Energy stocks led the gains after Bangladesh signed an agreement with Indonesia on Sunday to open talks on imports of liquefied natural gas as Dhaka turned to the supercooled fuel to fill a shortfall of domestic natural gas. Infrastructure-related stocks were the top losers with network provider PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk down as much as 2.9 pct. An index of the country’s 45 most liquid stocks fell 0.4 percent. Malaysian shares extended gains into a third session, rising as much as 0.6 percent, and hit their highest since late April 2015. Public Bank Bhd climbed to a record high, while Malayan Banking Bhd hit a more than four-year high. Among other markets, Vietnam jumped 1.3 percent to its highest since March 20, 2017, before erasing gains. Food processor Vietnam Dairy Products fell 0.9 percent, while Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp dropped as much as 2.1 percent. Asian shares extended their bull run amid upbeat corporate earnings and strong global economic growth, while the dollar tried to bounce even as the White House continued to complain of “unfair” trade practices by competitors.
