Most Southeast Asian stock markets ended higher on Tuesday as Wall Street recorded modest overnight gains, underpinning sentiment in Asia. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5 percent on Tuesday, after Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 gained on Monday, recovering from two sessions of losses. "We saw modest gains on Wall Street yesterday. So, that inspired some buying momentum in Asian markets," said Manny Cruz, an analyst with Manila-based Asiasec Equities Inc.
Market participants will watch out for the US Federal Reserve meeting later this week, which will be attended by Fed Chair Janet Yellen, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and other global central bankers. Singapore shares rose 0.5 percent after a five-session losing streak, as industrials and financials climbed, with Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp gaining 0.5 percent and Sembcorp Industries up 1.7 percent.
Vietnam was the only market that fell in the region, with a nearly 1 percent drop to hit a near one-month closing low, as consumer staples and financials dragged the index. Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade fell 1.6 percent, while insurance company Baoviet Holdings lost 2.2 percent. Indonesian shares closed 0.3 percent higher, supported by financials and materials sectors. Share markets in Malaysia and Thailand gained 0.2 percent each.