BENGALURU: South Korea and Taiwan stocks led emerging Asian equities’ advance on Wednesday, while Thailand’s market rose as investors cheered a steady political outlook and fresh economic measures following the weekend election.
The MSCI index of emerging Asian equities rose 1 percent to a historic high, lifted by a 1 percent gain in South Korea’s KOSPI index and a 1.6 percent rise in Taiwan’s benchmark equities gauge.
The two tech-heavy markets account for about 40 percent of the MSCI index.
Seoul shares hovered near record highs, while a 1.9 percent rise in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company pushed Taipei’s benchmark to its strongest level on record.
South Korea’s markets climbed for a third consecutive session, underpinned by automakers Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp, which were up 5.9 percent and 4.6 percent, respectively.
The country’s officials said they will conduct preliminary reviews of US investment projects to quicken the implementation of a USD350-billion investment package pledged under a trade deal. It follows President Donald Trump’s threat of higher tariffs on South Korean autos and pharmaceuticals, among others.
Despite the broader rally, Bernstein analysts flagged stretched valuations and low risk premiums in the Seoul market.
In Southeast Asia, Thailand’s SET Index sustained its post-election rally, rising to 1,415.12, lingering near a 14-month high.
Thailand Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said the new coalition government will focus on debt-relief measures and investment to spur economic activity, while maintaining fiscal discipline.
Tanawat Ruenbanterng, head of research at TISCO Securities, said the “positive vibe” from the election win that has been supporting the index may continue for a few more days.
“SET may be pushed up towards 1,450-1,500 in the short term, but after that it may retreat as hope fades amid slow policy implementations,” Ruenbanterng said.
Indonesia’s benchmark index traded 1.3 percent higher and was set to gain for a third consecutive session.
Shares were recovering from an USD80-billion rout in late January after index provider MSCI warned of a potential downgrade to frontier-market status, citing transparency concerns in Indonesian stocks. On Tuesday, FTSE Russell delayed the index review for Indonesia.
The dollar index dipped 0.3 percent, extending its losing streak to a fourth consecutive session, after US data overnight showed that retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December.
Markets will be keeping an eye on the US jobs data due later in the day. In Asia, Singapore’s dollar ticked up ahead of Thursday’s budget, which is expected to be cautious and fiscally conservative.
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