SE Asian currencies nosedive<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (AFP): Malaysian's central bank intervened yesterday
\nin currency markets to check the slide of the beleaguered
\nringgit, as southeast Asian currencies fell amid rumors of more
\neconomic troubles in the region, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The central Bank Negara, which on Thursday denied its governor
\nAhmad Don had quit, stepped in to limit the rise of the greenback
\nat 2.6515 ringgit.<\/p>\n
\"Bank Negara had been absent from the market for sometime now
\nand when the ringgit fell quite sharply today they intervened,\" a
\ndealer said, adding that in early London trading funds chased the
\ngreenback higher against the ringgit.<\/p>\n
\"We heard that there was also buying of the dollar in the
\nforward market, which means that the funds are targeting higher
\nlevels for the U.S. dollar against the ringgit,\" said Alison
\nSeng, of U.S. research house Standard and Poor's MMS in
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
The ringgit ended Asian trading Friday at 2.6505 to the
\ndollar, compared with Thursday's close of 2.6425.<\/p>\n
The Malaysian unit and other southeast Asian currencies had
\ncome under relentless attacks since Thailand effectively devalued
\nthe baht on July 2.<\/p>\n
The closely-watched baht ended slightly higher at 30.70 to the
\nU.S. dollar in offshore trading, from Thursday's close of 31.03.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian rupiah closed yesterday at 2,593 to the
\ngreenback from 2,590. 50, amid rumors the central bank wanted to
\nwiden further the daily trading band of the currency and
\nperceived losses suffered by several Indonesian banks with
\nunhedged U.S. dollar positions.<\/p>\n
The band was widened early last month in an apparent bid to
\nmake it more difficult for speculators to target their attacks on
\nthe rupiah.<\/p>\n
A tight monetary policy by the central Bank Indonesia to prop
\nup the rupiah had pushed up short term interest rates.<\/p>\n
The fall in the ringgit, as well as the spate of negative news
\nin the region, also dampened the Singapore dollar which dipped
\nFriday to 1.4770 against the greenback from Thursday's 1.4730.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/se-asian-currencies-nosedive-1447893297",
"image": ""
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