SE Asia Stocks-Most up ahead of holidays; domestic institutions lift Thai shares

BANGKOK, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets

mostly gained on Wednesday as Thai shares eked out gains with

institutional investors buying shares on bargains, but market

holidays in the region kept most investors on the sidelines.

Thai key SET index traded slightly higher with

active buying in dividend-yielding stocks such as Intouch

Holdings, Advanced Info Service and

Bangkok Bank.

Domestic institutions led among buyers while foreign

interest was relatively subdued, traders in Bangkok said.

"The window dressing could continue to support the market

towards the end of the year but institutional investors are very

selective and we may not see a big increase in the SET index," a

trader at BT Securities said.

Singapore's key index was up 0.4 percent after five

consecutive sessions of gains, the Jakarta composite index

rose 0.6 percent, heading for a second straight rise and

Vietnam was 0.6 percent higher.

Energy shares rebounded amid volatility in crude oil prices,

with outperformers including Singapore's Noble Group

and Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production.

The Kuala Lumpur composite index fell 0.1 percent

amid selling in recent gainers such as Public Bank,

but shares of Petronas Chemicals Group rose almost 1

percent, in line with energy shares in the region.

Singapore and Malaysia will be closed for Christmas on

Thursday, with Indonesia closing on Thursday and Friday.

The Philippine stock market is closed on Wednesday through

Friday for the Christmas holidays, and will reopen on Monday.

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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change at 0454 GMT

Market Current Prev Close Pct Move

Singapore 3345.91 3332.51 +0.40

Kuala Lumpur 1746.88 1749.05 -0.12

Bangkok 1533.69 1531.17 +0.16

Jakarta 5168.97 5139.07 +0.59

Ho Chi Minh 540.87 537.88 +0.56

(Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath;

Editing by xxxx)