Asian currencies mostly higher, rupiah steady<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): The Japanese yen's vigor buoyed most
\nAsian currencies late Thursday, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The yen provided some relief for the won, the New Taiwan
\ndollar, and to a lesser extent, the Singapore dollar, although
\nthe impact was relatively modest, given that the Japanese
\ncurrency was wedged within familiar ranges, currency watchers
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The South Korean won, the New Taiwan dollar, the Singapore
\ndollar and the Philippine peso were firmer. The Thai baht was
\nslightly weaker.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian rupiah held steady, despite the increased
\nlikelihood of renewed speculation on the currency, following a
\ndecision by a handful of major foreign banks in Singapore to
\nstart trading rupiah non-deliverable forwards from Monday,
\ndealers said.<\/p>\n
The rupiah was unchanged from Wednesday around 9,595 to the
\ndollar.<\/p>\n
The new market, beyond Bank Indonesia's jurisdiction because
\nsettlement would be in dollars, might allow arbitrageurs to
\ncapitalize on discrepancies in NDF and onshore rates, putting the
\nrupiah in a dangerous position given the smoldering social and
\npolitical problems in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Overall, trading was cautious as market participants sat tight
\nahead of potentially market-moving announcements by monetary
\nauthorities in Singapore and Thailand, and as they re-assessed
\nthe prospects of another aggressive interest rate cut in the
\nU.S., dealers said.<\/p>\n
Market participants continued to digest Federal Reserve
\nChairman Alan Greenspan's cautiously optimistic views on the U.S.
\neconomy, in his testimony to the Senate Banking Committee
\nTuesday, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The South Korean won was the biggest gainer in Asian foreign
\nexchange markets, thanks to the yen's advance, dollar-selling by
\nlocal exporters and foreign equity fund inflows, dealers said.<\/p>\n
Extending its recent decline, the dollar closed at 1,247.0
\nwon, down from 1,252.3 won Wednesday.<\/p>\n
There are also concerns that the South Korean central bank may
\nintervene to curb the won's appreciation, to maintain the
\ncountry's export competitiveness amid slowing external demand, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The New Taiwan dollar benefited from the yen's gains and a 3.7
\npercent surge on the local bourse, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The U.S. dollar closed at NT$32.344, down from Wednesday's
\nclose of NT$32.387.<\/p>\n
After trading in a tight range, the Singapore dollar
\nstrengthened slightly to S$1.7447 against its U.S. counterpart,
\nfrom S$1.7450 late Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Market participants were hesitant to take aggressive positions
\nahead of a policy statement by the Monetary Authority of
\nSingapore next week, dealers said.<\/p>\n
Mounting pressure on Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori to
\nresign and repatriation flows shored up the yen, which was quoted
\nat Y116.16 to the dollar around 1015 GMT (5:15 a.m, EST),
\ncompared with Y116.45 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar was
\nat Y116.60 late Wednesday in Tokyo.<\/p>\n
But the yen's strength didn't rub off on the Thai baht, as
\noffshore participants refrained from taking new positions ahead
\nof the Thai central bank's meeting with commercial bank
\ntreasurers Friday, dealers said.<\/p>\n
Bank of Thailand will clarify its new disclosure requirements
\non foreign exchange transactions, effective March 1, at the
\nmeeting.<\/p>\n
Bank of Thailand's move to standardize, and make more
\nstringent, reporting formats of foreign exchange dealings by
\nonshore banks had sparked fears - among some - that this could be
\na precursor to more rigid exchange controls, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The dollar was quoted at 42.425 baht, up from 42.370 baht late
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
The Philippine peso closed higher as exporters unloaded
\ndollars and as fears of a credit rating downgrade by Fitch
\nsubsided following the agency's comments that such a move is less
\nlikely following the leadership change, dealers said.<\/p>\n
\"The whole dynamics have changed since the political situation
\nstabilized,\" said Shridharan at Standard Chartered Bank.<\/p>\n
The dollar closed at 47.490 peso on the Philippine Dealing
\nSystem, down from Wednesday's close of 47.955 peso.<\/p>",
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