Indonesia, Singapore outliers among weaker Asian equities this week

Shares in Indonesia and Singapore advanced and were on course to outperform their Asian peers this week, as investors focussed on AI spending and valuation concerns while an upswing in crude prices dented regional risk appetite.

MSCI's gauge of ASEAN equities .MISU00000PUS jumped 6% to its highest in more than five months. Singapore makes up more than half of the index, while Indonesia accounts for around 8%.

The Jakarta Composite index .JKSE rose as much as 1% to a two-week high and was on track for its sixth straight weekly gain.

"Indonesia's recent outperformance is largely a valuation-and-positioning story as investors rotate from crowded AI-related markets into cheaper, under-owned opportunities," said Gary Tan, portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments, flagging a stronger-than-expected quarterly GDP print.