Asian currencies mostly down late, Peso continues slide<\/p>\n
Dow Jones
\nSingapore<\/p>\n
The Philippine peso extended losses on Wednesday, a day when most
\nAsian currencies moved to a weaker footing.<\/p>\n
The peso closed at a four-month low on continued fallout from
\nthe weekend's failed mutiny by junior army officers that has
\nreignited security concerns in the Philippines.<\/p>\n
The Singapore dollar, South Korean won and New Taiwan dollar
\nwere weaker in the wake of the yen's overnight losses, although
\nthose currencies remained within narrow trading ranges against
\nthe U.S. unit. The Indonesian rupiah and Thai baht bucked the
\nsessions' trend to close stronger.<\/p>\n
The dollar closed at 54.700 pesos on the Philippine Dealing
\nSystem, up from 54.670 pesos on Tuesday. Apart from security
\nconcerns, month-end corporate demand for the dollar, especially
\nfrom oil firms, weighed on the peso, traders said.<\/p>\n
Central Bank Governor Rafael Buenaventura said the monetary
\nauthority didn't intervene to support the peso during the
\nsession.<\/p>\n
Analysts said the weekend's events have raised the political
\nrisk premium on the Philippines, especially with presidential
\npolls due in May 2004.<\/p>\n
J.P. Morgan Chase Bank noted Buenaventura said on Tuesday that
\nthe peso would recover to the 53-pesos level in the fourth
\nquarter of 2003.<\/p>\n
"However, we feel that the macropolicy environment will become
\nincreasingly politicized ahead of the 2004 election," said J.P.
\nMorgan Chase Bank, which forecasts the dollar to trade to at
\nleast 56 pesos by year-end.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, dollar sales by local exporters helped cushion the
\nSouth Korean won's fall, traders said.<\/p>\n
The dollar ended at 1,180.0 won, up from 1,178.7 won Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Some traders suspect the government entered the market via
\nstate-run banks near the session close to lift the dollar above
\nthe 1,180 won mark.<\/p>\n
Against the Singapore dollar, the U.S. unit was quoted at
\nS$1.7558 late in Asia, up from S$1.7528 Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Investors bought the U.S. currency to cover short positions
\nbuilt up in recent sessions. The buying gathered pace
\nmidafternoon, led by local banks, but profit-taking then set in
\nto take the U.S. unit off highs, traders said.<\/p>\n
The rupiah reversed early losses to close stronger. The dollar
\nended at Rp 8,510, down from Rp 8,610 Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Dealers said the rupiah's recovery was likely due to capital
\ninflows linked to the sale of a further 20 percent stake in
\nnationalized Bank Danamon Indonesia.<\/p>\n
They suspect foreign investors bought rupiah to settle payment
\nfor the Bank Danamon shares with the Indonesian Bank
\nRestructuring Agency.<\/p>\n
The agency is raising around Rp 1.3 trillion from the sale,
\nwith half the amount coming from foreign investors.<\/p>\n
Against the New Taiwan dollar, the U.S. unit closed at
\nNT$34.400, up from NT$34.380 at the previous close.<\/p>\n
The Thai baht was stronger. Traders said sentiment on the
\ncurrency remained bullish due to the country's strong economic
\nfundamentals.<\/p>\n
Unless the dollar breaches 42.10 baht, the U.S. unit will
\nlikely head south, a Singapore trader said.<\/p>\n
Late in Asia, the dollar was quoted at 41.97 baht, down from
\n42.01 baht on Tuesday.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asian-currencies-mostly-down-late-peso-continues-slide-1447899208",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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