CORRECTED - CORRECTED-DEALTALK-Even distressed sellers in Asia get top price

(Corrects paragraph 7 to show one buyer for ING Swiss assets)

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* AIG, ING fetch top prices for Asia assets

* Other Asia auctions attracting high bids

* Sellers' market climate in Asia underscores bullish signals

* Scarcity of quality assets also a factor

By Michael Flaherty and Narayanan Somasundaram

HONG KONG, Nov 6 (Reuters) - In Asia lately, it pays to be a seller -- even if you're a company under pressure to offload an asset or two.

That's not normally the case. Sellers under pressure typically command lower prices. But a few factors, including the strong economic environment holding up across Asia, is turning that rule upside down.

Despite a few bumps in the region's markets, confidence is up among executives, as are corporate valuations.

"The market for buyers right now is terrible," said the head of an Asia-focused private equity firm, who did not want to be named. The reply was tongue-in-cheek, though with a whiff of real frustration. "There's just a lot of liquidity out here. Sellers are asking for high prices."

Of all the barometers used to gauge the current strength of Asia's economic climate, the M&A market shows particularly bullish signals. Bankers in this business are always bullish, but the prices paid for some assets sold by what are technically "distressed sellers" have raised eyebrows.

American International Group (AIG.N), shedding units globally after a U.S. government bailout, sold its Taiwan life insurance unit for $2.15 billion last month. Two months earlier, media reports and sources said the company seemed to be having a hard time attracting more than $1.5 billion. [ID:nTP307656]

A day later, ING Group NV (ING.AS), the Dutch financial group restructuring after its own massive government bailout, sold its private banking unit in Asia for $1.5 billion -- around 5.8 percent of its assets, or more than double what was paid for ING's Swiss banking units earlier in the month. [ID:nSIN503877]

The ING banking sale underscored one the Asian scarcity factor that bankers and investors point to when considering the high prices being paid. In an emerging market region, few opportunities have existed to scoop up an asset like ING's.

And then there's Citigroup (C.N), another bailed out U.S. financial institution, also selling assets worldwide. Recent market chatter had indicated the sale of its Japanese telemarketing group would not generate the price it hoped.