EMERGING MARKETS-Malaysia's ringgit, Singapore dollar gains as travel curbs ease

  • 10/11/2021
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* Malaysia lifts interstate, international travel curbs * Singapore dollar hits two-week high * Thai stocks scale over four-week high By Sameer Manekar Oct 11 (Reuters) - Malaysia"s ringgit scaled a near one-month peak on Monday and equities advanced more than half a percent after the government lifted interstate and international travel restrictions, while most other Asian currencies edged higher. Singapore dollar firmed 0.2% to hit its highest in two weeks, while equities touched a near two-month peak after the government opened its borders to more countries for quarantine-free travel. Meanwhile, investors will be eyeing Singapore"s advanced third-quarter economic growth data expected later in the week, with analysts at OCBC Bank expecting a moderation from second-quarter"s 14.7% year-on-year growth. The Monetary Authority of Singapore is likely to keep its monetary policy settings unchanged at this juncture, but may signal a need for recalibration in 2022, the OCBC analysts said in a note. Meanwhile, a soft U.S. payrolls figure last week did little to alter market expectations of tapering of bond purchases by the U.S. Federal Reserve, pressuring risk-sensitive Asian markets as the U.S. dollar firmed and Treasury yields jumped. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, edged higher to 94.139, while the 10-year benchmark yields hit multi-month highs on expectations of the Fed"s tapering plans. Investors now await U.S. September inflation data on Wednesday, which, according to analysts at Mizuho bank, "will be a key trigger for bond markets to adjust positions just ahead of Federal Open Market Committee"s minutes." In Malaysia, the ringgit added 0.2% to scale 4.167 per U.S. dollar, its highest since Sept. 17, while equities advanced as much as 0.7% and were on course to gain for a fifth consecutive session. Malaysia lifted interstate and international travel restrictions for residents fully vaccinated against COVID-19 starting Monday, as the country achieved its target of inoculating 90% of its adult population. The Thai baht firmed by about 0.3% while stocks were up 0.4% to scale their highest in more than four weeks. The Indonesian rupiah also edged higher. Among the regional equity markets, Philippine stocks surged 2.7% for their biggest intraday jump since mid-August, rallying after two consecutive sessions of declines, while the peso slipped 0.3%. Markets in South Korea, and Taiwan were closed for a holiday. HIGHLIGHTS: ** Indonesian 10-year benchmark yields edges higher to 6.359% ** China orders miners in Inner Mongolia to ramp up coal production - nL1N2R40KN ** India says it has ample coal stocks for power sector - nL4N2R6076 ** Global tax deal seeks to end havens, criticized for "no teeth" - nL1N2R41MK Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0339 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCK STOCK DAILY YTD X S S YTD % % DAILY % % Japan -0.42 -8.3 <.N2 1.57 3.81 9 25> China 1 EC> India +0.00 -2.5 <.NS 0.00 27.99 6 EI> Indones +0.07 -1.2 <.JK -0.16 8.23 ia 0 SE> Malaysi +0.24 -3.5 <.KL 0.60 -3.32 a 0 SE> Philipp -0.24 -5.2 <.PS 2.86 -0.50 ines 3 I> S.Korea 7 11> Singapo +0.10 -2.4 <.ST 0.06 9.53 re 3 I> Taiwan -0.34 +1.5 <.TW -0.44 12.95 6 II> Thailan +0.18 -11. <.SE -0.04 13.07 d 33 TI> (Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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