SE Asia Stocks-Philippines rises on slowing inflation; others fall

* Philippines' annual inflation eases to 1-yr low of 3.8 pct * Singapore snaps two sessions of gains * Malaysian stocks poised for sixth straight session of losses By Shriya Ramakrishnan March 5 (Reuters) - Philippine shares climbed on Tuesday as the country's inflation cooled in February, while other Southeast Asian stock markets were subdued as a rally fuelled by hopes for an imminent Sino-U.S. trade deal ran out of steam. Data released in early trading hours showed the Philippines' annual inflation eased to a one-year low of 3.8 percent last month on slower gains in food, fuel and utility prices, and marked a return to the central bank's 2-4 percent target for the year. With inflation back within the target range, it is likely to provide more leeway to the central bank to reverse some of last year's tightening, when it hiked rates five times to tackle soaring inflation. Financials and consumer stocks lifted the archipelago's benchmark stock index 0.6 percent higher, with lender BDO Unibank Inc and real estate firm Ayala Land Inc advancing 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte made a surprise appointment on Monday by naming his budget secretary as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas governor, even as the market expected to see a central bank insider take the helm of the monetary authority. Among other markets in the region, Singapore reversed course from the previous session and fell 0.3 percent as data showed the city-state's manufacturing activity contracted for a sixth straight time in February. Markets had rallied in the previous session amid reports the United States and China were close to striking a deal to end their year-long damaging trade spat. "Asian markets may need fresh catalysts for the next move higher beyond jawboning for the U.S.-China trade deal," OCBC Bank said in a note. Industrial and consumer stocks led declines on the Singapore index, with Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd dipping 0.3 percent, while Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd lost 1.2 percent. The Jakarta SE Composite Index dropped 0.8 percent, with all sectors in the red. Malaysian shares were set to extend losses for a sixth straight session, ahead of the central bank's policy meeting. Bank Negara Malaysia will likely keep its benchmark overnight rate at 3.25 percent at a policy review on Tuesday, a Reuters poll showed, even as consumer prices on an annual basis fell in January for the first time in nearly a decade. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS AS AT 0311 GMT Market Current Previous close Pct Move Singapore 3241.53 3251.08 -0.29 Bangkok 1632.84 1635.3 -0.15 Manila 7717.92 7675.47 0.55 Jakarta 6436.598 6488.42 -0.80 Kuala Lumpur 1689.28 1693.99 -0.28 Ho Chi Minh 993.92 993.99 -0.01 Change so far in 2019 Market Current End 2018 Pct Move Singapore 3241.53 3068.76 5.63 Bangkok 1632.84 1563.88 4.41 Manila 7717.92 7,466.02 3.37 Jakarta 6436.598 6,194.50 3.91 Kuala Lumpur 1689.28 1690.58 -0.08 Ho Chi Minh 993.92 892.54 11.36 (Reporting by Shriya Ramakrishnan in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)