SE Asian monies higher as rupiah sentiment brightens<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones) Fund inflows lifted Southeast Asian
\ncurrencies higher against the U.S. dollar Monday, as offshore
\ninvestors maintained their bullish stance towards the region.
\nEven the rupiah -- long shunned as a pariah currency -- benefited,
\nrising to its highest level in 16 weeks as market players poured
\nmoney into Indonesian assets.<\/p>\n
The Thai baht and the Philippine peso also ended Asian trading
\nhigher, bolstered by buying interest in the offshore market. The
\none currency to miss out on the regional trend was the Singapore
\ndollar, which ended Asian hours flat on the day, despite an
\nupwards revision to the government's official growth forecast for
\n1999.<\/p>\n
Activity in North Asia was more subdued. Both the South Korean
\nwon and the New Taiwan dollar ended little changed on the day as
\nmarket players, fearful of central bank intervention, held back
\nfrom buying into the local currencies.<\/p>\n
Despite a lack of activity caused by the closure of several
\nregional and major markets for holidays on Monday, overall
\nsentiment toward Asian regional markets remained undimmed.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, which in recent months has lagged behind the rally
\nin other Asian markets, attracted some of the heaviest investment
\nflows, said dealers.<\/p>\n
\"There really is good genuine demand for rupiah from
\ninvestors. There are a lot of funds going into the Jakarta stock
\nmarket,\" said one rupiah trader at a U.S. bank in Singapore as
\nthe Jakarta Composite stock index added nearly 5 percent on
\nMonday, leaving it up by more than 30 percent over the year to
\ndate.<\/p>\n
Accelerating sales of U.S. dollars for rupiah had earlier
\npushed the U.S. currency below the Rp 8,000 level for the first
\ntime since mid-January. By the end of Asian trading the U.S.
\ndollar had dropped to Rp 7,940, down from Rp 8,230 late on
\nFriday.<\/p>\n
Despite the IMF official's bullish outlook, some foreign
\nexchange traders questioned the rupiah's potential to make
\nfurther gains in the near term.<\/p>\n
According to traders at one U.S. bank in Singapore, offshore
\nclients have already begun selling rupiah to take their profits
\nfrom the currency's recent gains. At the same time dealers report
\nheavy purchases of the U.S. currency by banks in Jakarta taking
\nthe opportunity to acquire cheap dollars.<\/p>\n
In the short term, the U.S. dollar is likely to find some
\nsupport at Rp 7,800, while Rp 7,500 should prove a formidable
\npsychological barrier, said a rupiah trader at one U.S. bank in
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
Among other regional currencies, the Thai baht and the
\nPhilippine peso both rose on Monday, with the baht hitting its
\nhighest level since mid-February.<\/p>\n
Traders in Singapore, however, warned that the baht's rise,
\nwhich saw the U.S. dollar pushed below the 37.00 baht, had been
\nexaggerated by the closure of the domestic foreign exchange
\nmarket for a holiday on Monday.<\/p>\n
Demand for the U.S. currency from onshore corporate clients is
\nlikely to re-emerge on Tuesday, offsetting the demand for baht
\nfrom foreign investors and potentially reversing Monday's slide
\nin the U.S. dollar, they said.<\/p>\n
Late on Monday the U.S. dollar was quoted in Singapore at
\n36.9850 baht, down from 37.2350 baht towards the end of Asian
\ntrading on Friday.<\/p>\n
The Philippine peso also ended higher, as the local stock
\nmarket continued to attract foreign investors. The market reacted
\npositively to the central bank's latest cut in its benchmark
\nborrowing and lending rates - its 12th so far this year.<\/p>\n
At the close of local trading, the U.S. dollar was quoted at
\n37.815 pesos, down from 37.989 pesos on Friday.<\/p>\n
The bullish tone in regional markets failed to lift the
\nSingapore dollar, however, despite the weekend's upward revision
\nof the government's 1999 growth forecast to 0 percent to 2
\npercent from -1 percent to 1 percent previously.<\/p>\n
After being sold to a low of S$1.6960, the U.S. dollar was
\npushed to a high of S$1.7050 in thin trading by buying from local
\nbanks before it finally settled at S$1.7005. Late on Friday the
\nU.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7030.<\/p>\n
In North Asia both the South Korean won and the new Taiwan
\ndollar were little changed on the day, with the won finishing
\ndown slightly, and the new Taiwan dollar edging higher.<\/p>\n
Trading in the won was generally subdued following the
\ngovernment's announcement on Friday of a $4.6 billion package of
\nintervention measures designed to hold down the won and safeguard
\nthe competitiveness of Korea's exports.<\/p>\n
At the close of domestic dealing, the U.S. dollar was at
\n1,190.10 won, up just a fraction from 1,188.00 won at Friday's
\nclose.<\/p>\n
Against the Taiwanese currency, the U.S. dollar ended at
\nNT$32.686, down marginally from NT$32.688 on Friday on moderate
\ntrading volume.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/se-asian-monies-higher-as-rupiah-sentiment-brightens-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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