Asian currencies mostly weaker; except peso<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Asian currencies were mostly softer
\nTuesday as the dollar garnered regional support from its strength
\nagainst the yen.<\/p>\n
The only regional currency to gain versus the dollar was the
\nPhilippine peso, which edged higher on seasonal remittance
\ninflows from Filipino workers abroad.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian rupiah experienced the biggest price swing,
\nending an abbreviated rally that began Monday and extended into
\nearly trading Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The rupiah opened stronger as sentiment toward the currency
\nwas buoyed by a government order Monday requiring state-owned
\ncompanies to buy dollars directly from the central bank and not
\nin the open market.<\/p>\n
After falling to an intraday low of Rp 9,150, the dollar
\nclosed at Rp 9,510 in Asia, up from its close Monday at Rp 9,430.<\/p>\n
Dealers said local companies snapped up the dollar, which fell
\nto an intraday low early in the session due to selloffs by
\noffshore participants.<\/p>\n
\"Offshore participants reacted positively to Rizal's order to
\nstate companies,\" said a dealer with a local bank. \"But, the
\ndollar's sharp fall provided opportunities for dollar-hungry
\nlocal companies to buy the unit.\"<\/p>\n
As reported late Monday, Senior Economic Minister Rizal Ramli
\ntold state-owned companies, including oil company Pertamina, to
\nbuy the dollar directly from the central bank if they need to pay
\nfor imports or repay offshore debts, rather than purchase dollars
\nfrom the open market. This was to ease the pressure on the local
\nunit.<\/p>\n
To follow up on Rizal's instruction, Pertamina and Bank
\nIndonesia held a meeting Tuesday afternoon but they declined to
\ncomment on the results of the meeting.<\/p>\n
In the currency market, dealers detected only a small amount
\nof dollar selling by Bank Indonesia, which consequently failed to
\ndefend the rupiah.<\/p>\n
The dollar's rise against the yen weighed on the New Taiwan
\ndollar, which ended at a 20-month low Tuesday.<\/p>\n
At the end of Asian trading the U.S. dollar was quoted at
\nNT$33.088, up from the previous close of NT$33.035. It was the
\nU.S. dollar's strongest performance since NT$33.095 on April 9,
\n1999.<\/p>\n
Against the yen, the dollar broke through the Y110 level after
\nmarket players bought the U.S. currency in anticipation that a
\nsurvey of business sentiment due out Wednesday will reflect a
\nslowdown in Japan's economic recovery.<\/p>\n
The South Korean won lost ground against the dollar after an
\novernight rally on Wall Street failed to lift the local stock
\nmarket.<\/p>\n
The dollar closed Tuesday at 1,190.1 won, up from Monday's
\nclose of 1,183 won.<\/p>\n
The Singapore dollar gave up gains amid U.S. dollar buying by
\nlocal companies in a fairly thin market, dealers said.
\nThe Singapore currency also tracked the Indonesian rupiah lower.
\nLate in Asian trading the dollar was quoted at S$1.7347, up from
\nS$1.7338 late Monday.<\/p>\n
The Philippine peso rose in extremely thin trading, buoyed by
\ninflows from Filipinos working overseas and light demand for
\ndollars.<\/p>\n
The dollar closed at 49.850 pesos on the Philippine Dealing
\nSystem, down from 49.945 pesos at the previous close.<\/p>\n
The Thai baht ended a listless trading session slightly lower
\nas most investors remained on the sidelines following a holiday
\nMonday.<\/p>\n
Late in Asia the dollar was quoted at 43.520 baht, up from
\n43.515 baht in offshore trading late Monday.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asian-currencies-mostly-weaker-except-peso-1447893297",
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