SE Asia Stocks-Cautious; Philippines falls for 6th sesssion

Reuters

* Philippines at 7-week closing low

* Singapore erases early losses, ends higher

By Karthika Suresh Namboothiri

Sept 12 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets ended on a

cautious note on Wednesday, as broader Asian peers hit a

14-month low amid worries of intensifying Sino-U.S. trade war,

with Philippine shares extending losses to a sixth straight

session.

Sentiment in broader Asia remained sombre with MSCI's

broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan

falling to its lowest levels since July 2017,

after China on Tuesday said it wanted to impose $7 billion a

year in sanctions on Washington.

"South Asia market risk is an entirely different kettle of

fish, and 'when in doubt, stay out', as there are few clear-cut

risk decisions on the back of the looming China tariffs...,"

Stephen Innes, Head of Trading APAC, OANDA, said in a research

note.

The Philippine index fell nearly 1 percent to its

worst seven-week closing low, led by industrial stocks such as

JG Summit, down 5.5 percent, and Aboitiz Equity

Ventures which hit a more than five-year trough.

A weakness in emerging market currencies including the Peso,

coupled with quickening inflation in the Philippines has seen

Manila's benchmark index shedding nearly 5 percent over

the past six sessions.

Meanwhile, Singapore shares reversed course to end

0.6 percent higher, with lender Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp

climbing nearly 1 percent and shipbuilder Keppel Corp

gaining 2.2 percent.

Data showed that the city-state's total retail sales for

July declined 2.6 percent from a year earlier, dragged by a fall

in motor vehicles sales.

"Market concerns about U.S.-Sino trade tensions could have

contributed to dampened domestic consumer sentiments," OCBC Bank

said in a note.

Indonesian shares erased early gains and ended 0.6

percent lower. Bank Central Asia and Telekom Indonesia

, down about 2 percent each, were the biggest drags on

the index. An index of the country's 45 most liquid stocks

shed 0.7 percent.

Malaysian shares declined 0.8 percent to a near

four-week low. Telecom group Axiata lost 2.2 percent.

Thailand ended 0.4 percent higher while Vietnam

added 0.2 percent.

For Asian Companies click;

SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change on day

Market Current Previous Close Pct Move

Singapore 3124.65 3109.91 0.47

Bangkok 1679.39 1672.42 0.42

Manila 7449.2 7518.01 -0.92

Jakarta 5798.151 5831.117 -0.57

Kuala Lumpur 1785.25 1799.17 -0.77

Ho Chi Minh 987.01 985.06 0.20

Change on year

Market Current End 2017 Pct Move

Singapore 3124.65 3402.92 -8.18

Bangkok 1679.39 1753.71 -4.24

Manila 7449.2 8558.42 -12.96

Jakarta 5798.151 6355.654 -8.77

Kuala Lumpur 1785.25 1796.81 -0.64

Ho Chi Minh 987.01 984.24 0.28

(Reporting by Karthika Suresh Namboothiri; Editing by Vyas

Mohan)