GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks and pound cheer Brexit, Alibaba slumps on monopoly probe

* Equities get lift on Brexit trade talk progress
* Sterling benefits as deal appears close
* Alibaba hammered as China regulators circle in

By Stanley White and John McCrank
TOKYO/NEW YORK, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Asian shares and the
British pound rose on Thursday ahead of the Christmas break, as
Britain and the European Union closed in on a free-trade deal
and investors placed bets on global economic recovery prospects.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.14%. Australian stocks .AXJO advanced
by 0.57%, while Tokyo shares .N225 rose 0.43%.
Chinese stocks .CSI300 rose 0.02%, but Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd 9988.HK slumped 6.28%, its biggest daily drop in
six weeks, after China's market regulator said it will
investigate the tech giant for suspected monopolistic behaviour.
U.S. stock futures EScv1 edged up by 0.11%.
Investors cheered news that Britain and the European Union
were on the cusp of striking a narrow trade deal on Thursday,
which would help avoid shipping and travel chaos on both sides
of the English Channel. Hopes for more fiscal spending and expectations that
coronavirus vaccines will become more available next year also
supported global equities.
"A pro-risk and weak dollar theme dominated markets on
optimism regarding vaccines, U.S. and UK fiscal stimulus, and
Brexit, with hope an agreement on the latter can be reached
before Christmas," ANZ Bank analysts wrote in a research memo.
The potential for a Brexit deal boosted sterling GBP=D3 ,
which rose 0.3% to $1.3535. The pound held steady at 90.20 pence
per euro EURGBP=D3 .
The pound also drew support after France lifted its ban on
freight coming from Britain, which it had enacted in response to
a more contagious coronavirus variant in Britain. MSCI's gauge of global stocks .MIWD00000PUS was up 0.1%,
but moves were subdued in thin holiday trading.
Alibaba, co-founded by Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, was the
stock to watch in Asia on Thursday as Chinese authorities
stepped up their campaign against big technology companies.
Separately, Ant Group, the mobile payments and consumer
credit arm of Ma's tech empire, said it will comply with all
regulatory requirements after China's financial watchdogs said
they will conduct regulatory talks with it in the next few days.
Last month, China halted Ant Group's $37 billion
dual-listing initial public offering, crushing what would have
been the world's largest stock market debut.
Wall Street ended mostly higher on Wednesday, with the Dow
Jones Industrial Average .DJI closing up 0.38% and the S&P 500
.SPX edging 0.07% higher.
The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC declined 0.29%.
A raft of mixed U.S. economic data showed lower jobless
claims and an uptick in new orders for durable goods, but also a
pullback in consumer spending, falling personal income and
fading sentiment as the holiday shopping season nears its end
amid a resurgent pandemic. Investors largely shrugged off comments by U.S. President
Donald Trump that a nearly $900 billion stimulus bill, agreed
upon after months of wrangling in Congress, was "a disgrace"
that he might not sign. "Risk-on sentiment is guiding markets so far today and it
appears to be weighted more toward possible optimism toward a
Brexit deal and the cherry-picked parts of U.S. releases, rather
than Trump's reckless antics over signing the stimulus and
funding bill," said Derek Holt, head of capital markets
Economics at Scotiabank.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 rose 18
cents to $48.30 a barrel by 0124 GMT, while Brent crude futures
LCOc1 climbed 20 cents to $51.40, buoyed by a drawdown in U.S.
stockpiles and a potential Brexit trade deal. O/R