Rupiah up late on dollar profit-taking, stop-losses<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (Dow Jones): The Indonesian rupiah rose 2 percent late
\nWednesday, as it extended Tuesday's technical rebound amid easing
\npolitical tensions in Jakarta, dealers said.<\/p>\n
Around 0920 GMT, the dollar was at Rp 9,130, down from around
\nRp 9,330 late Tuesday, but up from Wednesday's intraday low of Rp
\n9,115.<\/p>\n
Early in the day, dollar-selling by a large U.S. investment
\nbank around Rp 9,310 to Rp 9,320 prompted interbank participants
\nto unload their dollar positions, sending the dollar below the
\n9,300 support level, dealers said.<\/p>\n
Stop-loss sell orders were triggered as the dollar's support
\nlevels against the rupiah caved in one after another, dealers
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Senior Economics Minister Rizal Ramli's comments that Bank
\nIndonesia hadn't intervened to support the rupiah Wednesday
\nquashed speculation state banks were selling dollars on behalf of
\nthe central bank.<\/p>\n
Rizal said the rupiah had strengthened Wednesday after Vice
\nPresident Megawati Sukarnoputri urged her party Tuesday to stand
\nbehind Wahid.<\/p>\n
Dealers said they expected the dollar's next psychological
\nsupport of Rp 9,100 to hold as sentiment on the rupiah remains
\nbearish, with the domestic political situation still susceptible
\nto another flare up.<\/p>\n
\"I certainly think it's a buy on dips,\" said a dealer at a
\nEuropean bank.<\/p>\n
The weighted average interest rate on one-month Sertifikat
\nBank Indonesia notes rose quite sharply at Wednesday's weekly
\nauction, amid concerns over inflation, but this will unlikely
\nprovide any additional boost to the rupiah as political
\nuncertainties loom, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The one-month SBI notes stood at 13.81 percent at the weekly
\nauction Wednesday, up from 13.74 percent at last week's auction,
\nBank Indonesia said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Most Asian currencies closed stronger in Asia
\nWednesday, after an overnight rebound in the Nasdaq dispelled
\nsome of the gloom plaguing the region while signs emerged that
\nSouth Korea might be making progress in restructuring its
\neconomy.<\/p>\n
The New Taiwan dollar, however, ended lower Wednesday amid
\noutflows of foreign equity funds from the local market, traders
\nnoted.<\/p>\n
A holiday in the Philippines - where political turmoil has
\nhurt sentiment in the region as a whole in recent weeks - also
\ncontributed to the respite in markets Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The South Korean won was swept higher as stock prices in Seoul
\nsoared in response to the Nasdaq's 5.6 percent overnight jump and
\nsigns that the government might be getting out of the business of
\npropping up teetering companies - which could be a positive
\ndevelopment for the economy in the long run.<\/p>\n
The Singapore dollar and the Thai baht were lifted in part by
\nbuoyant rupiah and won. However, a new rule in Thailand that
\nkicked in Wednesday requiring traders to report the purpose of
\neach foreign exchange transaction stifled trading in the baht,
\ndealers said.<\/p>\n
Late Wednesday, the U.S. dollar at S$1.7498, easing from
\nS$1.7563 late Tuesday. The U.S. currency was quoted at 43.630
\nbaht, down from 43.885 baht Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Late Wednesday, the U.S. dollar was at 1136.0 won, down from
\n1139.70 won late Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The Taiwan dollar bucked the general trend Wednesday, falling
\nagainst its U.S. counterpart. Intervention by the central bank
\nsupported the Taiwan dollar during thin early trading, but the
\ncurrency eventually succumbed to weakness in local stock prices.<\/p>\n
Taiwan's main stock index Wednesday closed down 119.16 points
\nat 5425.02.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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