* Fed official hints at possible December rate cut * Nomura flags Asia's vulnerability to US market swings * Asian chipmakers rise between 0.4% and 2.5% By Sneha Kumar Nov 24 (Reuters) - Most emerging Asian stocks rose on Monday on hopes of a December U.S. interest rate cut, though gains were capped by divided views among policymakers over monetary policy easing and concerns that the AI-driven equity rally might be overstretched. The MSCI emerging Asia stock index <.MIMS00000PUS> rose 1%, rebounding from Friday's 3% drop. South Korea's benchmark index <.KS11> climbed 0.2%, stocks in Taiwan <.TWII> added 0.4%, and Indonesia <.JKSE> rose 0.6%. Top U.S. Federal Reserve official John Williams, a permanent voter on rate policy and vice chair of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, on Friday said rates could fall "in the near term", raising market bets for a cut in December. Fed funds futures now point to a 57% chance that the U.S. central bank will cut by 25 basis points next month, up from less than a 30% chance a week ago. Other officials, such as Fed Boston President Susan Collins, have voiced their opinions against an interest rate cut in December due to ongoing risks in inflation and job mandates. Asian chipmakers Samsung Electronics <005930.KS>, SK Hynix <000660.KS> and TSMC <2330.TW> rose between 0.4% and 2.5%, boosting their respective benchmarks. Persistent fears of overvaluation in the artificial intelligence sector prompted investors to pull back from the two Asian tech-heavy indices, which rely heavily on the growing demand for semiconductor chips. Sentiment in the region was also battered by the uncertainty in the U.S. after the 43-day government shutdown halted operations across the country and caused a $11 billion permanent hit to the economy. "If some of the above investor concerns continue to weigh on U.S. equities and risk sentiment, we think Asia stocks will also be vulnerable," said Chetan Seth, a financial analyst at Nomura. He highlighted that the stock exchanges in Seoul and Taipei were some of the most exposed to these volatilities. Stocks in Singapore <.STI> added 0.4%, while its currency drifted lower. Last week, the city-state upgraded its economic outlook for 2025 after the third-quarter gross domestic product beat market expectations and initial estimates. Meanwhile, Philippine stocks <.PSI> fell 1.1% after three sessions of consecutive gains. Asian currencies were largely on the back foot, with the Philippine peso and Thai baht leading the declines, each down around 3%. HIGHLIGHTS: ** South Korea sees room for cooperation with Taiwan on U.S. chip tariffs, trade minister says ** China says Japan sent 'shocking' wrong signal on Taiwan ** Thai central bank wants weaker baht, sees room to cut rates, chief says Asia stock indexes and currenci es at 0418 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX YTD INDEX STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % % DAILY YTD % % Japan -0.13 +0.37 <.N225> -2.40 21.89 China -0.34 14.02 > India +0.35 -3.99 <.NSEI> 0.12 10.39 Indonesi -0.09 -3.68 <.JKSE> 0.62 19.58 a Malaysia +0.17 +7.95 <.KLSE> -0.03 -1.54 Philippi -0.36 -1.45 <.PSI> -1.09 -9.15 nes S.Korea 0.23 60.96 > Singapor -0.08 +4.45 <.STI> 0.41 18.47 e Taiwan -0.11 +4.18 <.TWII> 0.44 15.27 Thailand -0.29 +5.62 <.SETI> 0.24 -10.20 (Reporting by Sneha Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich) ((mailto:Sneha.kumar@thomsonreuters.com)) Keywords: EMERGING MARKETS/ASIA
