SE Asia Stocks-Indonesia, Philippine hit record closing highs; Thai rebounds

BANGKOK, Feb 18 (Reuters) - The Indonesian stock index

closed at a record high on Wednesday as banking shares rallied

following an unexpected interest rate cut by the country's

central bank, while Thai stocks rebounded with late bargain

hunting taking the benchmark SET index above the key 1,600

level.

Jakarta composite index finished up 1 percent at

5,390.44, topping the record close of 5,374.16 hit on Feb. 13.

Shares of Bank Rakyat Indonesia jumped 4 percent

and shares of Bank Mandiri advanced 1.9 percent, both

closing at a record high. Lower interest rates were expected to

boost loan growth and lift net interest margins for banks,

brokers said.

Indonesia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by

25 basis points to 7.5 percent after market close on Tuesday.

The Thai index rose 1 percent to 1,603.14,

recovering from a more than two-week closing low on Tuesday.

Cement shares, such as Siam Cement, were up on strong

volumes as the government's infrastructure projects lured

investors.

Public holidays in the region could keep investors on the

sidelines, with the Thai stock market seen trading rangebound

later in the week, brokers said.

Most other markets in Southeast Asia ended the day higher as

hopes on Greece's debt negotiations lifted global sentiment. The

Philippine main index notched up gains for a fifth day to

a record closing high of 7,803.45.

Singapore and Malaysia, which traded for

half a day, will remain closed through Friday for the Lunar New

Year holidays.

Indonesia and the Philippines will be shut on Thursday,

while Vietnam will remain closed through Feb. 23.

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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change on day

Market Current Prev Close Pct Move

Singapore 3435.66 3415.91 +0.58

Kuala Lumpur 1807.87 1810.09 -0.12

Bangkok 1603.14 1587.75 +0.97

Jakarta 5390.44 5337.50 +0.99

Manila 7803.45 7793.40 +0.13

Change on year

Market Current End 2014 Pct Move

Singapore 3435.66 3365.15 +2.10

Kuala Lumpur 1807.87 1761.25 +2.65

Bangkok 1603.14 1497.67 +7.04

Jakarta 5390.44 5226.95 +3.13

Manila 7803.45 7230.57 +7.92

Ho Chi Minh 587.24 545.63 +7.63

(Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath)