* Travel stocks buoy Singapore, Thailand
* Tech-heavy China, Taiwan stock indexes drop
* Philippine economy contracts in Q3, govt says 'worst is
over'
By Anushka Trivedi
Nov 10 (Reuters) - Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia drove
stock market gains in Asia on Tuesday after results from a
late-stage COVID-19 vaccine trial fuelled optimism about the
easing of global restrictions, which should help the region's
tourism- and trade-dependent economies next year.
Battered sectors including airline, travel and tourism were
beneficiaries after drugmaker Pfizer and German partner
BioNTech said their experimental vaccine was more than
90% effective in preventing COVID-19.
Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia
indexes were up between 2% and 3.6%, but those of tech-heavy
Taiwan and China were the biggest losers.
"The markets have reacted very quickly, anticipating likely
future announcements for new vaccines," said Nadège Dufossé,
head of cross-asset strategy at Candriam.
"With the vaccine announcement coinciding with the election
of Joe Biden as the next U.S. president – and the reduction in
political risk this entails – it seems that the stars have
aligned today for markets."
Philippine equities rallied more than 5%, brushing
off a steep economic slump in the third quarter and helped by
government assurances that the economy would rebound in 2021.
However, local currency markets were subdued as the
greenback rebounded. Only the Taiwanese dollar stood
out with a 1% gain after the island reported an
expectation-beating surge in October exports.
"The market has priced out election risks and is starting to
price in the transition to a more conventional economic crisis,
away from the pandemic crisis," DBS Bank analysts in Singapore
wrote in a note.
That could keep the dollar supported in the long-term and
pose a challenge for Asian currencies, they added.
The net oil-exporter Malaysia's ringgit weakened
the most, as crude prices slumped on worries over demand in
coronavirus-hit Europe and the United States.
HIGHLIGHTS
** Indonesian 10-year benchmark yields were down
about 2.2 basis points at 6.241%
** Singapore Airlines soars 20% to near five-month
high
** Malaysia top gainers: Genting Bhd up 17.4% and
Genting Malaysia Bhd up 13.7%, while glove makers Top
Glove and Hartalega Holdings slumped
Asia stock indexes and currencies
at 0645 GMT
COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY % FX YTD % INDEX STOCKS STOCKS YTD %
DAILY %
Japan +0.24 +3.33 0.26 5.28
China +0.17 +5.23 -0.60 9.94
India -0.06 -3.81 0.80 3.22
Indonesia +0.00 -1.21 1.64 -13.58
Malaysia -0.36 -0.78 2.04 -2.10
Philippines -0.01 +4.92 5.23 -9.98
S.Korea -0.11 +3.70 0.23 11.61
Singapore +0.01 -0.20 2.61 -16.92
Taiwan +1.08 +5.58 -0.35 9.04
Thailand +0.13 -1.97 3.16 -16.03
(Reporting by Anushka Trivedi in Bengaluru, additional
reporting by Swati Pandey; Editing by Anil D'Silva)
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