An Indonesian police spokesman on Monday said that the police had arrested six people suspected of plotting to assassinate four state officials during a wave of civil unrest in Jakarta last week. Meanwhile, Malaysian stocks rallied to a one-week high, surging around 0.8%. State utility company Tenaga Nasional Bhd gained 2.6% after posting a near 8% rise in quarterly revenue.
Shares of AMMB Holdings Bhd rose 2.8% after declaring a dividend of 15 sen per share and posting a 33% rise in its full-year net profit after tax and minority interests (PATMI) to 1,505.3 million Malaysian ringgit ($359.73 million). Philippine and Thai indices were among the other gainers. The Philippine Stock Exchange index snapped three sessions of losses to rise 0.5% on the back of real estate stocks. SM Prime Holdings Inc and Ayala Land Inc climbed 2.2% and 1.2%, respectively.
Meanwhile, Thai stocks pared some of its gains from earlier in the session to end the day 0.4% higher. Rest of the markets in the region traded slightly lower as investors awaited further developments on the US-China trade front. "The trade truce which was in play since the turn of the year has devolved into a waiting game where everyone waits to see who blinks first," a note from Maybank said.
US President Donald Trump told at a news conference that Washington was not ready to make a deal with Beijing, but he expected one in the future dampening investor sentiment. Singapore stocks edged marginally lower, while Vietnam stocks dipped 0.3%.