Most Southeast Asian stocks were cautious on Friday as the Bank of England raised more hopes of monetary easing that is expected to further improve risk appetite which had slumped following Britain's shock exit from the European Union last week.
Gains on Wall Street overnight were propelled in part after BOE Governor Mark Carney said the central bank would probably need to pump more stimulus into Britain's economy over the summer in wake of the Brexit shock.
Central banks in Southeast Asia are also on wait and watch mode after the Brexit vote, with Indonesia's central bank saying earlier this week that it has room to loosen monetary policy again as inflation is within its range.
The Philippine index rose nearly 1.0 per cent as sentiment was boosted after the inauguration of Rodrigo Duterte as president on Thursday.
Financial and consumer cyclical stocks led the gainers, with BDO Unibank Inc rising 2.2 per cent and SM Investments Corp gaining 3.3 per cent.
The index hit a more than 14-month high on Thursday and gained 7.4 per cent in the April-June quarter.
Indonesian shares fell 0.6 per cent, with the index touching its highest since June 2015 in early trade. Kalbe Farma Tbk PT was down nearly 2.0 per cent.
The Jakarta Composite Index gained 3.5 per cent in the April-June quarter.
Malaysian shares fell marginally, with consumer cyclicals dragging the index down. Genting Bhd lost 1.6 per cent.
The Thai market was closed on Friday for the mid-year closing day, according to a news agency report.
-SRS-
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