SE Asia Stocks-Philippines hits record high; others cautious ahead of Fed meet

By Binisha Ben

Sept 18 (Reuters) - Philippine shares hit an all-time high

on Monday, while other markets in the region were cautious at

the start of a week in which the U.S. Federal Reserve is likely

to address its bloated balance sheet as part of a long reversal

of super-cheap money worldwide.

The Philippine main stock index was up as much as 0.2

percent, hitting a record high of 8,197.65

A tax reform package, which comes up for discussion later

this week, has led to optimism in the market, said Lexter

Azurin, an analyst with Manila-based AB Capital Securities.

In May, lower house of Congress in the Philippines passed

the tax reform bill aimed at generating revenue for a

multi-billion dollar infrastructure program key to the

government's economic agenda, but the bill still needs Senate

approval.

China's ghost month, which analysts say stalls momentum in

the markets as some Chinese investors reduce trading during this

period, nearing an end this week also has fund mangers

positioning and starting to bet on select names, Azurin added.

Globally, the main event for markets will be the Fed meet

on Tuesday and Wednesday where it is likely to take another step

toward normalisation on what is rapidly becoming a global

trend.

Singapore shares were up as much as 1.2 percent, the

highest since Sept. 7, with DBS Group and

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp climbing 2.1 and 1.4

percent, respectively.

The index was also helped by August non-oil domestic exports

(NODX) surging from a year earlier at their strongest pace in

six months, led by solid shipments of electronics and robust

sales to China, data showed

The Thai index rose 0.6 percent, extending gains for

a third session, boosted by industrials and energy stocks.

Airports of Thailand and oil and gas refiner PTT

Pcl led the gains, rising as much as 1.3 percent and 2

percent, respectively.

Meanwhile Indonesian shares were slightly lower with

materials and consumer discretionary stocks weighing down the

index.

The index of the country's 45 most liquid stocks

fell 0.3 percent.

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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS: CHANGE AT 0423 GMT

Market Current Previous Pct Move

Close

Singapore 3242.12 3209.56 1.01

Bangkok 1671.38 1660.53 0.65

Manila 8197.65 8180.85 0.21

Jakarta 5859.062 5872.392 -0.23

Kuala Lumpur 1785.74 1786.33 -0.03

Ho Chi Minh 807.07 805.82 0.16

Change on year

Market Current End 2016 Pct Move

Singapore 3242.12 2880.76 12.54

Bangkok 1671.38 1542.94 8.32

Manila 8197.65 6840.64 19.84

Jakarta 5859.062 5296.711 10.62

Kuala Lumpur 1785.74 1641.73 8.77

Ho Chi Minh 807.07 664.87 21.39

(Reporting by Binisha Ben in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair)