SE Asia Stocks-Most gain; Philippines drops further to 6-mth low

* Philippine shares drop 1 pct; slip below 8,000 level

* Indonesia set to break 6-session losing streak

* Vietnam on course for eighth straight winning session

* Focus on Fed's rate decision, outlook

By Aaron Saldanha

March 21 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets

recovered on Wednesday ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate

decision and outlook, while the Philippines extended its losses

to hit the lowest in more than six months.

The Fed is widely expected to raise rates at its two-day

policy meeting that ends on Wednesday, with the focus mainly on

Chairman Jerome Powell's commentary the next day, which may

provide hints on the number of rate increases for the rest of

the year.

Most investors have already adjusted their positions into

fixed income assets, said Rachelle Cruz, the head of research at

AP Securities in the Philippines.

Broader Asian shares outside Japan firmed

0.4 percent.

Singapore shares inched 0.2 percent higher, led by

financials. United Overseas Bank Ltd contributed the

most to the benchmark, rising 1.2 percent.

Indonesian shares gained 0.6 percent, helped by

consumer staples and materials, and was on track to break a

six-session losing streak.

The index of the country's 45 most liquid stocks

also firmed 0.6 percent.

Malaysian shares gained 0.3 percent, as financials

and consumer staples rose. DiGi.Com Bhd gained as much

as 2.4 percent.

Vietnam shares rose 0.8 percent and were on track for

an eighth straight winning session on strength in real estate

stocks and financials.

Philippine shares were the region's only losers,

retreating 1 percent. Financials and industrials weighed the

most on the benchmark, which fell below the 8,000 mark to the

lowest since early September.

BDO Unibank Inc fell as much as 4.4 percent, the

steepest intraday percentage drop since September 2016.

The Philippine central bank's reticence to raise rates puts

the country at a significant disadvantage if the peso weakens

after a potential rate raise by the Fed, analysts say.

"Companies suffering in terms of margins would be consumer

companies as a lot of their products are imported from other

countries," said AP Securities' Cruz.

For Asian Companies click;

SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS: Change as at 0357 GMT

Market Current Previous close Pct Move

Singapore 3520.16 3513.31 0.19

Bangkok 1806.39 1799.84 0.36

Manila 7981.51 8059.6 -0.97

Jakarta 6279.487 6243.577 0.58

Kuala Lumpur 1861.22 1856.39 0.26

Ho Chi Minh 1168.6 1159.39 0.79

Change so far in 2018

Market Current End 2017 Pct Move

Singapore 3520.16 3402.92 3.45

Bangkok 1806.39 1753.71 3.00

Manila 7981.51 8558.42 -6.74

Jakarta 6279.487 6355.654 -1.20

Kuala Lumpur 1861.22 1796.81 3.58

Ho Chi Minh 1168.6 984.24 18.73

(Reporting by Aaron Saldanha, Additional reporting by Saif

Naqvi in Bengaluru; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)