SE Asia Stocks-Hold on to gains; Singapore hits 14-mth closing high

By Shashwat Pradhan

Jan 24 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets ended

firmer on Tuesday, holding on to gains earlier in the day, as

investors weighed the possible effects of the United States

withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal.

Fulfilling a campaign pledge, U.S. President Donald Trump

signed an executive order pulling the United States out of the

12-nation TPP, distancing it from Asian allies, even as China's

influence in the region rises.

"Everybody is still trying to digest the actual effects of

the withdrawal," said Theodore Tan, an analyst with AP

Securities.

Trump, who wants to boost U.S. manufacturing, said he would

like to cut corporate taxes, but warned American manufacturers

of penalties if they moved production outside the

country.

"Of course, Trump wants to sound good to the American people

on his first day and it has always been his stance to 'put

America first', but it won't be that easy to penalise companies

for building outside America," Tan added.

Singapore rose 0.5 percent, closing at a 14-month

high, with financials accounting for more than half of the

gains.

The financial sector was boosted by the city state's biggest

lender by market-cap, DBS Group Holdings, which

climbed 1.7 percent to end at a 17-month high.

Singapore's industrial production in December is expected to

have risen on an annual basis, a Reuters poll

showed.

In other markets, Vietnam rose 0.6 percent to hit a

near nine-year closing high, driven by gains in financials and

utilities.

Oil and gas refiner PetroVietnam Gas jumped as much

as 3.3 percent, its biggest intra-day percentage gain in more

than a month.

Indonesia closed 0.8 percent higher, with financials

and telecom stocks leading.

The country's largest telecommunications firm, PT

Telekomunikasi Indonesia, led the gains on the

benchmark, advancing 1.8 percent.

Philippines ended slightly lower after closing at a

near three-month high on Monday. Conglomerate Ayala Land

was the biggest drag on the benchmark, sliding as much

as 3.3 percent.

For Asian Companies click;

SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change on day

Market Current Previous Pct Move

close

Singapore 3041.95 3025.48 0.54

Bangkok 1578.82 1570.79 0.51

Manila 7370.65 7374.35 -0.05

Jakarta 5292.088 5250.968 0.78

Kuala Lumpur 1680.69 1671.31 0.56

Ho Chi Minh 691.36 687.15 0.61

Change this

year

Market Current End 2016 Pct Move

Singapore 3041.95 2880.76 5.60

Bangkok 1578.82 1542.94 2.33

Manila 7370.65 6840.64 7.75

Jakarta 5292.088 5296.711 -0.09

Kuala Lumpur 1680.69 1641.73 2.37

Ho Chi Minh 691.36 664.87 3.98

(Reporting by Shashwat Pradhan; Additional reporting by

Aparajita Saxena; ; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath)