SE Asia Stocks -Singapore leads regional gains; banks up after results

BANGKOK, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian shares edged

higher on Friday as Singapore's key index touched a more than

three-week high, led by bank stocks, and the Thai benchmark

extended gains as buying by domestic funds lifted large caps.

The sentiment in Asia was broadly positive,

with Japanese stocks up after the Bank of Japan surprised

markets with fresh easing steps.

Singapore's Straits Times Index was up 0.8 percent

at 3,259.61, the highest since Oct. 9. It is on track for a

weekly gain of 1.1 percent and a modest monthly loss, in line

with others in the region.

Gains in U.S. stocks overnight were also supportive, brokers

said.

"With Wall Street's firm overnight close, we think it will

be hard to ignore the gains and there could be some slight

window dressing as well, this being the last day of the trading

month though sentiment is still cautious given the recent

volatility," broker NRA Capital said in a report.

Shares of United Overseas Bank Ltd climbed 2.2

percent after the company reported a better-than-expected

quarterly profit. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd

and DBS Group Holdings Ltd both traded

higher after favourable results.

The Thai SET index rose 0.5 percent, up for a

seventh straight session. Portfolio managers continued buying

shares for long-term equity funds and retirement mutual funds,

an equity trader in Bangkok said.

Favourable tax treatment made the funds popular among

investors, with demand often active towards the end of the year.

Shares of Advanced Info Service Pcl and Siam

Cement Pcl were among those actively traded.

External factors overshadowed weak domestic data, brokers

said, after data showed Thailand's manufacturing output fell for

an 18th straight month in September, reflecting weakness in the

production of cars, hard disk drives, petroleum and jewellery.

Strong economic news in major countries drove greater

interest towards risk assets and boosted a belief that the U.S.

could tolerate higher interest rates, broker KGI Securities said

in a report.

U.S. stocks rose on Thursday, boosted by a strong reading on

quarterly economic growth and by another round of upbeat

earnings reports including Visa, which accounted for nearly 140

points in the Dow industrials.

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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change at 0612 GMT

Market Current Prev Close Pct Move

Singapore 3259.61 3234.31 +0.78

Kuala Lumpur 1843.59 1842.78 +0.04

Bangkok 1573.06 1565.35 +0.49

Jakarta 5068.07 5058.85 +0.18

Manila 7182.94 7170.99 +0.17

Ho Chi Minh 593.22 589.14 +0.69

(Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Editing by Anupama Dwivedi)