BENGALURU- The Malaysian ringgit and Thai baht flirted with multi-year highs on Friday as most Asian currencies gained on strong fund flows into assets that stand to benefit from China’s massive stimulus aimed at reviving growth.

Stocks in China were headed for their best week since November 2008.

That helped an MSCI gauge of Asian emerging market equities advance to its highest level since mid-February 2022. It was set to end the week 7 percent higher, and the month 8 percent higher. China makes up more than 30 percent of the index.

China’s huge stimulus package, directed at pulling the world’s second-largest economy out of its deflationary slump and rejuvenating growth, has been a boon for emerging Asian markets that rely on trade and tourism-linked flows from China.

“EM (Emerging Markets) and particularly China is likely to outperform as the USD weakens and investors hunt for higher returns; foresee possible rotation out of the expensive and crowded global tech trade into cheaper EM assets,” said David Chao, global market strategist, Asia Pacific (ex-Japan) at Invesco.

China’s yuan slipped as traders booked profits ahead of the Golden Week holidays starting next Tuesday, but hovered near its strongest level in 16 months. It has gained 0.5 percent this week.

The ringgit appreciated as much as 0.7 percent to 4.123 per dollar and hovered around a level last seen in September 2021.

The Thai baht clocked its eighth straight session of gains, appreciating to 32.35 per dollar – the strongest level since early March 2022.

The baht and ringgit are among the region’s best-performing currencies this month, advancing more than 4 percent each. The ringgit is set to log its third straight monthly gain, boosted by a confluence of factors including political stability and strong foreign inflows.

Emerging Asian stock markets were under pressure on Friday: shares in the Philippines and Indonesia lost up to 0.7 percent each. Stocks in Malaysia declined 0.8 percent, while those in Singapore slipped 0.6 percent.