Asian monies mixed against U.S. dollar<\/p>\n
Alan Yonnan, Dow Jones, Singapore<\/p>\n
Asian currencies were mixed in listless trading Friday as market
\nplayers refrained from staking out large positions ahead of a
\nlong holiday weekend in the U.S.<\/p>\n
The Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah crept higher against the
\ndollar, while the New Taiwan dollar and Philippine peso weakened.
\nThe South Korean won and Singapore dollar were virtually
\nunchanged.<\/p>\n
The yen, which often helps set the tone in regional currency
\nmarkets, was of little help as it struggled to establish a clear
\ndirection following the release of mixed economic data in Japan.<\/p>\n
The New Taiwan dollar was the biggest mover, hit by continuing
\noutflows of foreign funds from the local stock market.<\/p>\n
The U.S. dollar closed at NT$34.247, compared with NT$34.193
\nat Thursday's finish.<\/p>\n
Volume was a thin US$325 million, with many participants
\nsidelined ahead of the long weekend. Markets in the U.S. will be
\nclosed Monday in observance of Labor Day.<\/p>\n
Sales of shares by foreign investors contributed to a 0.7
\npercent decline in the Taiwan Stock Exchange's main index. The
\nindex was down 4 percent for the week.<\/p>\n
Pressure on the Taiwan currency is likely to persist in the
\nnear term due to weakness in the information technology sector,
\nthe country's weak banking system, and cross straits tensions
\nwith China, according to Claudio Piron, currency strategist at
\nStandard Chartered Bank.<\/p>\n
The bank is forecasting the U.S. dollar to edge up to
\nNT$34.420 over the next month.<\/p>\n
The peso faced mild selling pressure as corporations bought
\ndollars to cover month-end foreign debt requirements and banks
\ncovered their short positions in the U.S. currency.<\/p>\n
The dollar's decline against the peso over the previous four
\nsessions made it an attractive buy, traders said.<\/p>\n
The dollar closed at 51.840 pesos on the Philippine Dealing
\nSystem, up from 51.760 pesos late Thursday. Trading volume was a
\nscant $139 million.<\/p>\n
The rupiah got some help from dollar selling by a government
\nagency.<\/p>\n
Traders said the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency, or
\nIBRA, was in the market selling dollars it has received as
\nproceeds from its asset sales.<\/p>\n
Late in Asia, the dollar was quoted at Rp 8,840, down from Rp
\n8,875 late Thursday.<\/p>\n
IBRA aims to sell a total of Rp 43 trillion worth of assets
\nthis year to help plug the deficit in the state budget, which is
\nexpected to run at 2.5 percent of the nation's gross domestic
\nproduct.<\/p>\n
Against the baht, the dollar was quoted at 42.000 bath,
\ncompared with 42.230 bath late Thursday.<\/p>\n
A government report earlier Friday showing that Thailand's
\ntrade balance swung to a deficit in July had little impact on
\ntrading.<\/p>\n
Imports rose 11.1 percent and exports climbed just 7.7 percent
\nfrom a year earlier, producing a trade larger-than-expected trade
\ngap of $185 million.<\/p>\n
The won was little changed for the second straight session.<\/p>\n
The dollar ended at 1,201.9 won, compared with Thursday's
\nfinish of 1,201.5 won.<\/p>\n
Dollar demand came mainly from foreign investors, who unloaded
\nlocal stocks for the fifth straight session.<\/p>\n
Against the Singapore dollar the U.S. dollar was quoted at
\nS$1.7487 in late Asian trade, compared with S$1.7485 late
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
Faced with a lack of fresh domestic leads, market players
\nmainly took their cue from the broader U.S. dollar trend against
\nits other regional counterparts.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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