Southeast Asia stocks: Most weaker; Indonesia retreats from record high

[BANGKOK] Southeast Asian stock markets mostly fell on Monday, with the Indonesian benchmark retreating from the previous session's record closing high amid profit-taking, while shares of Thai Airways International underperformed on the Bangkok bourse.

Jakarta's composite index closed down 1.2 per cent at 5,260.02 from Friday's record closing high of 5,323.89. Selling hit recent gainers such as Bank Mandiri and Unilever Indonesia.

In Bangkok, shares of national carrier Thai Airways dropped 5.1 per cent amid concerns about its finances, traders said.

Thailand's military-led government has approved a restructuring plan for Thai Airways in a bid to restore profitability to the national carrier's operations, a senior government official said on Monday.

The broader SET index fell 0.6 per cent, erasing early gains.

Shares of Bank of Ayudhya, which led the index higher in early trade, finished 13.8 per cent lower after the bank denied a report about acquisition of additional BAY shares by major shareholder Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) and delisting from the exchange.

Stocks in Singapore and Malaysia ended lower after last week's rallies, with other markets trimming gains as global markets turned cautious after Greece's Syriza party promised to roll back austerity measures after its victory in a snap election.

REUTERS