Indonesia Rupiah ends op on reported IBRA dollar selling<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (Dow Jones) : The rupiah ended slightly higher Friday
\nas the government's Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency, or
\nIBRA, reportedly sold dollars to help the local unit.<\/p>\n
The dollar was quoted between Rp9,410 and Rp9,430 in late
\nAsian trade Friday, a little lower than Rp9,425 to Rp9,470 late
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
The dollar fell as Holdiko - the IBRA unit charged with
\nmanaging assets formerly belonging to the Salim Group - sold
\nUS$50 million, traders said.<\/p>\n
IBRA sold a number of Salim assets this year and last year to
\nforeign investors, but didn't immediately transfer the proceeds
\ninto rupiah.<\/p>\n
Players that were long dollars cut those positions on the IBRA
\nselling and feared central bank intervention in thin pre-weekend
\ntrade. In the event, the central bank didn't sell dollars in the
\nmarket Friday, traders said.<\/p>\n
But the market is likely to remain bullish toward the dollar
\nnext week, they added. High dollar demand from local corporates
\nfor foreign debt repayment and to fund imports supported the U.S.
\ncurrency at its day low of Rp9,350.<\/p>\n
Next week, the dollar is likely to move in a Rp9,350-Rp9,650
\nrange.<\/p>\n
An escalation of tensions between Afghanistan and the U.S.,
\nhowever, could break the pair out of this range, traders said.<\/p>\n
Traders remain unsure how the rupiah would move on a U.S.
\nstrike on Osama bin Laden's bases in Afghanistan in retaliation
\nfor last week's terrorist attacks.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has the world's largest number of Muslims and some
\nmilitant groups have said they will attack U.S. interests in the
\ncountry if the U.S. hits Afghanistan. Such actions would push the
\ndollar higher.<\/p>\n
However, these elements represent a minority in Indonesia,
\nwith President Megawati Soekarnoputri reaffirming in her meeting
\nwith President George Bush this week in Washington that Jakarta
\nstands ready to fight terrorism.<\/p>\n
Events in Pakistan failed to move the rupiah Friday, as the
\nmarket focused on debt repayment issues and IBRA dollar selling.<\/p>\n
In Islamabad, Afghanistan's envoy to Pakistan said Friday his
\ncountry wouldn't hand over Osama bin Laden to the U.S. without
\nevidence of his involvement in the terrorist attacks.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's overnight rate stood at a lower-than-normal 15.25%
\nFriday, unchanged from Thursday. The rate fell this week after
\nthe central bank threw out about half the bids for its weekly
\none-month note auction, leaving the interbank market awash with
\nliquidity.<\/p>\n
Although this seems to point to lower rates, analysts said the
\ncentral bank is unlikely to push yields lower in coming weeks
\namid fears the rupiah could move lower on debt repayment
\noutflows. A weak rupiah this year has pushed up the cost of
\nimported goods, making inflation a constant worry.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesia-rupiah-ends-op-on-reported-ibra-dollar-selling-1447899208",
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