* Asian stocks firm, but trade is choppy
* China slips on property curbs, then rebounds
* Dollar under pressure after Fed, at 11-wk low
* Copper up 1 pct, crude slightly higher
By Ian Chua
SYDNEY, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar slipped on
Thursday to 11-week lows, while commodity prices and Asian
stocks rose after U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers voted
unanimously to maintain a $600 billion bond-buying plan to fuel
an economic recovery.
While the outcome of the Fed meeting was largely expected,
it backed the view that a wave of liquidity seeking higher
returns would continue to flow through into riskier assets.
"In this sort of environment, you look for growth assets. So
investors are looking to park their money in investments that
will provide good returns over time. As a result, equities and
commodities are high up on the list," said Craig James, chief
economist at CommSec in Sydney.
Japan's Nikkei average rose as much as 0.8 percent,
before paring gains to stand 0.3 percent higher, while stocks
elsewhere in Asia climbed 0.3 percent.
Chinese shares initially fell after another round of
measures to curb property prices hit mainland banks and real
estate developers.
But it later rebounded to stand higher on the day. South
Korea's KOSPI hit a record high at 2121.06.
Policymakers of the U.S. central bank unanimously agreed to
continue with the bond purchases, the first time there was no
dissent since December 2009.
The Fed, concerned about high unemployment, also said
underlying U.S. inflation was trending downwards, despite higher
commodity prices, contrasting in tone to other central banks,
particularly those in emerging markets.
Rising price pressures have already forced the likes of
India and South Korea to lift rates this year and more action is
expected in the months ahead, fuelling worries that tighter
policy could derail growth.
Those concerns have dealt a heavy blow to several
Southeast Asian stock markets in the past few weeks, with
investors locking in profits on last year's stellar gains.
But a recent bounce back in these markets suggested some
investors consider the sell-down was overdone.
Still, for markets to continue to perform, "investors need
assurance that inflation can be contained without tighter
monetary policy stifling growth," said SooHai Lim, investment
manager of Baring ASEAN Frontiers Fund.
"We believe the positive story for the Association of South
East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the frontier markets, spearheaded
by Sri Lanka and Vietnam, has not changed."
The dollar index , which measures the performance of
the dollar against a basket of major currencies, slipped back to
11-week lows. It last traded down 0.2 percent at 77.757.
"The lack of dissent (among FOMC members) suggests that the
committee remains as dovish as previously, showing few concerns
on inflation or likelihood to reverse aggressively accommodative
monetary policy," said David Rodriguez, strategist at DailyFX.
"The U.S. dollar could continue to decline on dovish outlook
for domestic monetary policy."
U.S. President Barack Obama, in his State of the Union
address late on Tuesday, called for investment in some areas and
cuts in others to make the U.S. economy more competitive.
The euro held around $1.3700 , having risen to $1.3721
overnight, a high not seen since Nov. 22, while the dollar eased
to 82.15 yen , hovering near one-week lows around 81.96
set earlier in the week.
Copper on the London Metal Exchange climbed 1.0
percent to $9,420.75 a tonne, not far off a record high around
$9,781.00 set earlier this month, while U.S. crude edged
up to $87.47 a barrel from Wednesday's two-month low of $86.03.
(Editing by Neil Fullick)
