Southeast Asian stock markets edged higher on Wednesday as plantation stocks such as PT Astra Agro Lestari Tbk and Wilmar International Ltd gained, but most markets saw weak buying interest due to the holiday season. Singapore's Straits Times Index ended at a near 17-month high of 3,180.81 while Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index reversed earlier losses to close 0.13 percent higher after late buying.

Indonesia also saw a late rebound, with Jakarta's Composite Index up 0.6 percent to 4,275.09, around its day's high. The Philippine Composite Index edged up 0.15 percent at 5,832.83, topping its record finish of 5,831.50 set on December 11. In relatively high trading volume, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange's VN Index climbed 1.2 percent to a near four-month peak amid expectations of government moves to deal with bad debts in the banking system. Thailand's benchmark SET index set a new 17-year closing high of 1,382.23 as investors rushed to buy equities funds which offer tax breaks towards the end of the year.

Copyright Reuters, 2012