Tuesday, 25 August 2015 17:13
BANGKOK: Southeast Asian stock markets rebounded on Tuesday as bargain hunting emerged in battered stocks across Asia and share buybacks by some companies helped the key stock indexes in Indonesia and Thailand regain some lost ground.
The Singapore Straits Times Index climbed 1.5 percent, recouping early losses and after dropping more than 4 percent in the previous session. Banking shares such as DBS Group Holdings led the rebound.
“Bargain hunting and short covering buoyed blue chips and selective buying of the REITS were notable as some money managers started to nibble,” broker NRA Capital said in a report.
Bargain hunters helped Asian stocks bounce off three-year lows, though share markets in China, epicentre of the rout, suffered another big sell-off.
In Jakarta, shares in state-controlled firms rallied after they started buying back their shares from Tuesday, led by a 7 percent surge in Semen Indonesia.
The broader stock index rose 1.6 percent after a 4 percent loss on Monday.
In Bangkok, shares of PTT Global Chemical, which hit an all-time closing low on Monday, surged almost 10 percent after the company announced a share buyback plan. The SET index rose 1.8 percent after Monday’s third straight loss.
The Philippine stock index ended up 0.6 percent after early weakness. Local investors collected beaten-down shares such as Megaworld which surged 8.4 percent, the biggest gainer.
Foreign investors continued selling shares, offloading 2.75 billion peso ($ 59.04 million) worth, stock exchange data showed.
Buying led by domestic institutions sent Malaysian shares about 2 percent higher, while foreign investors sold shares worth a net 338 million ringgit ($ 80.28 million), stock exchange data showed.
Vietnam’s benchmark VN Index ended up 0.58 percent after falling to an eight-month low the previous day.
