SINGAPORE, Dec 23 - The groggy dollar held steady above a fresh record low against the euro on Tuesday, while Asian stocks chased gains on Wall Street in trade thinned by a holiday in Japan. Oil slipped further from nine-month highs hit on Friday after OPEC's incoming president voiced concern about the high cost of crude and on forecasts for milder U.S. weather. South Korea shares <.KS11> edged up 0.7 percent in early trade, boosted by SK Telecom <17670.KS> and despite sharp falls in troubled card firms. "A rise in U.S. markets and the fact that the Korean market closed down yesterday despite generally bullish Asian markets led the market to rebound today," said Park Seok-hyun, an analyst at Kyobo Securities. At 0215 GMT, an MSCI index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan <.MSCIAPJ> was flat near a three-month high hit last week.
ASIAN STOCKS TRACK U.S. RALLY
A rally on Wall Street to fresh 19-month highs fuelled buying in Asian stocks, but trade was thin as investors moved into holiday mode. South Korea's SK Telecom climbed 1.72 percent, while a 1.6 percent rise in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co <2330.TW> lifted Taiwan shares <.TWII> 0.3 percent. South Korea's KEB Credit Service Co <038400.KS> fell 2.3 percent a day after it suspended cash advance services due to funding shortages, while LG Card Co <032710.KS> lost 0.9 percent. Australian stocks were little changed by midday but HHG Plc , the British life insurance business spun off by Australian financial group AMP Ltd , jumped on its debut. Hong Kong shares were flat just after the open with investors focusing on the debut of this year's final IPO, Gold miner Fujian Zijin Mining Industry Co Ltd <2899.HK>. Shares rise over 50 percent in early trade after it was 744 times subscribed.
DOLLAR STUCK NEAR LOWS
The dollar, which has been weighed down by a huge current account deficit and security concerns in Iraq, was fetching 107.35 yen, slightly off 107.51 in late New York and compared with a three-year low of 106.74 yen hit earlier this month. There were concerns Japanese authorities would take the opportunity of thin conditions to intervene over the next week to protect an export-led economic recovery. Against the euro , the dollar stood at $1.2400, up from a fresh low of $1.2447, its 14th record low in the last 17 trading sessions. The euro's strength has triggered fears for Europe's fragile economic recovery. Wall Street showed resilience, despite fears of another lacklustre retail holiday season as Wal-Mart Stores Inc said it expected December sales to reach only the low end of its forecast. The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 0.6 percent and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> climbed 0.4 percent, both finishing at their highest in 19 months. The technology-heavy Nasdaq <.IXIC> gained 0.25 percent. Investors were awaiting U.S. personal income and consumption data and the government's final reading on gross domestic product for the third quarter on Tuesday, hoping the data will reinforce the view that the world's largest economy is recovering strongly. Wall Street will be closed on December 25 and open for shortened sessions on December 24 and 26. The benchmark U.S. 10-year note fell 7/32 for a yield of 4.17 percent, up from 4.14 percent late on Friday. Oil fell seven cents in Asia to $31.80 after hitting a nine-month high of $33.93 on Friday, while gold was quoted at $409.75, littled changed from New York levels.//