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SE Asia Stocks-Singapore falls to near 6-wk low, Keppel biggest drag

By Chandini Monnappa

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Singapore shares hit their lowest in

nearly six weeks on Tuesday, dragged down mainly by oil

equipment and services providers after a unit of Keppel Corp Ltd

agreed to pay a $422 million fine to resolve charges

that it bribed Brazilian officials.

Keppel shares tumbled as much as 5.1 percent to their lowest

since Oct. 19, and also marked their biggest intraday percentage

drop since late April 2016.

Keppel Corp's offshore rig building business, Keppel

Offshore & Marine Ltd, agreed to pay the combined penalty to

resolve investigations by authorities in the United States,

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Brazil and its home country of Singapore, the U.S. Justice

Department said.

"The imposition of the financial penalties is undoubtedly a

negative," Nomura said in a note. "The stock could be under

pressure in the near term, we see this resolution as removing a

key overhang on the stock."

Shares of Sembcorp Marine Ltd fell as much as 4.6

percent to their lowest since Nov. 15, after the company said

its Jurong Shipyard unit had agreed to sell semi-submersible rig

West Rigel for $500 million and that the sale would result in a

loss of about S$24 million ($17.86 million).

Sembcorp Marine was also named among foreign companies that

did business with people who are under investigation in Brazil

as part of a massive corruption investigation involving the

country's state-run oil company Petrobras.

Sembcorp Marine had said earlier it did not make any illegal

payment.

Meanwhile, investors are waiting for the consumer price

index data, due later in the day, for cues about the

city-state's economy.

Headline consumer price index is expected to have risen in

November from a year earlier, a Reuters poll showed, with the

pace seen edging up slightly, partly due to higher oil

prices.nL4N1OK3DT]

Malaysian shares slipped with losses seen across

almost all sectors.

Telekom Malaysia Bhd was the biggest drag,

dropping nearly 6 percent, while Sime Darby gained

nearly 3 percent.

Thai shares were little changed with gains in

consumer and real estate stocks offset by losses in financials.

Thailand's tourism ministry said on Monday that the country

saw a 23.2 percent rise in foreign tourists in November.

The tourism industry is a major employer and accounts for 12

percent of the country's economy.

The Philippine and Indonesian markets were

closed for a local holiday.

For Asian Companies click;

SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS: CHANGE AT 0333 GMT

Market Current previous close Pct Move

Singapore 3375.46 3385.71 -0.30

Bangkok 1749.77 1750.22 -0.03

Kuala Lumpur 1754.58 1760.24 -0.32

Ho Chi Minh 958.86 958.31 0.06

Change so far this year

Market Current End 2016 Pct Move

Singapore 3375.46 2880.76 17.17

Bangkok 1749.77 1542.94 13.40

Kuala Lumpur 1754.58 1641.73 6.87

Ho Chi Minh 958.86 664.87 44.22

($1 = 1.3435 Singapore dollars)

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by

Subhranshu Sahu)