Most Asian stocks gain on China stimulus hopes; currencies subdued

Updates at 0651 GMT

By Sneha Kumar and Echha Jain

Oct 10 (Reuters) –Most Asian stock markets rose on Thursday, buoyed by hopes that China will soon disclose details of its fiscal stimulus plans, while most currencies edged lower ahead of U.S. inflation data due later in the day.

Shares in Shanghai .SSEC led the charge and were last up 1.8%, driven by expectations that China’s finance ministry will unveil detailed plans on Saturday, following a lacklustre media briefing earlier in the week.

Other regional markets followed the lead, with Bangkok’s benchmark index .SETI rising as much as 0.9% to its highest since Sept. 25, while Kuala Lumpur stocks .KLSE climbed 0.5%.

“Markets may be getting optimistic that we might see a bit more detail that could support the view that China’s basically trotting out and will start to grow again,” said Robert Carnell, Asia-Pacific head of research at ING.

China’s central bank also started accepting applications from financial institutions for a new funding scheme, initially worth 500 billion yuan ($70.8 billion), aimed at supporting the capital market.

“If sentiment and the China story are looking more positive than they should, that should lift all the markets in the region (EM), at least for a while,” Carnell said.

Most currencies in the region were subdued, ahead of the U.S. inflation report for September.

The report will likely give global investors more cues about the Federal Reserve’s policy decision next month, especially after the September meeting minutes showed “some” participants were inclined towards a quarter-point cut, a sign that the easing cycle will not be as aggressive as expected.

The Philippine peso PHP=, Malaysian ringgit MYR= Indonesian rupiah IDR= and the Thai baht THB=TH slipped between 0.2% and 0.4%.

On Friday, the Bank of Korea is expected to kick-start its easing cycle with a 25-basis-point cut, a Reuters poll showed, joining its Asian counterparts such as Bank Indonesia and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

The Singapore dollar SGD= was flat, while stocks .STI slipped 0.2%. The city-state’s central bank is widely expected to maintain its current monetary policy next week, refraining from any easing measures amid inflation and growth uncertainties stemming from geopolitical tensions.

Markets in Taiwan were closed for a holiday.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Thai consumer confidence falls to 17-month low in September

** Philippines trade deficit at $4.4 billion in August

** Malaysia end-September palm oil stocks up 6.93%, MPOB says

** Vietnam 2024 rice exports seen above 7.6 mln tons, food association chairman says

($1=7.0646 Chinese yuan renminbi)

Reporting by Sneha Kumar and Echha Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Subhranshu Sahu