Shares end at high on foreign buying<\/p>\n
Dow Jones, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesian shares closed at another record high on Thursday as
\nforeign investors continued to buy blue chips, like Indonesian
\nSatellite (Indosat) and Bank Central Asia (BCA), that are
\nexpected to book higher full-year earnings.<\/p>\n
\"Foreign investors remained dominant buyers,\" said an analyst
\nwith Kuo Capital Securities.<\/p>\n
He said underlying sentiment stayed positive after the World
\nBank raised its forecast for Indonesia's gross domestic product
\ngrowth.<\/p>\n
Dealers said profit-taking by local retail investors, however,
\ncapped the main index's further rise.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite ended up 6.47 points, or
\n0.7 percent, to hit an all-time closing high of 925.19.<\/p>\n
Gainers led decliners 80 to 47, while 75 stocks were
\nunchanged.<\/p>\n
Volume was 4.7 billion shares worth Rp 3.4 trillion.<\/p>\n
Indosat led gainers on expectations of higher full-year
\nearnings due to more contributions from its cellular services. It
\ngained 2.8 percent to Rp 5,550.<\/p>\n
Bank Central Asia ended up 3.8 percent at Rp 2,750, as an
\nincrease in interest income is expected to boost the bank's full-
\nyear earnings.<\/p>\n
Dealers said investors continued to buy shares in tobacco
\ncompanies on expectations of the firms' improved performance next
\nyear because of stronger consumer purchasing power.<\/p>\n
Cigarette maker Gudang Garam climbed 1.9 percent to Rp 13,150
\nand rival Hanjaya Mandala Sampoerna advanced 2.3 percent to Rp
\n6,700.<\/p>\n
Profit-taking, however, hit shares in bellwether
\nTelekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), which closed down 1.1 percent
\nat Rp 4,700 and Bank Mandiri, which fell 1.5 percent to Rp 1,675.<\/p>\n
Dealers said they expect the market to trade higher on Friday
\non further buying in blue chips.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in the currency market, the rupiah ended lower on
\nThursday on the dollar's rise against its major rivals following
\nbetter-than-anticipated U.S. trade data and expectations for
\nanother U.S. interest rate hike later this year, dealers said.<\/p>\n
The dollar ended at Rp 9,070, up from its close on Wednesday
\nat Rp 9,050.<\/p>\n
\"The rupiah was not spared from the impact of the dollar's
\nrise against other global currencies,\" a dealer said.<\/p>\n
The U.S. currency rose after the Federal Reserve on Wednesday
\nraised interest rates for the fourth time this year, hiking its
\nshort-term interest-rate target to 2.00 percent from 1.75
\npercent. The Fed continued to strike an optimistic note on the
\neconomy and inflation, so leaving the door open for another rate
\nhike in December.<\/p>\n
Good news for the dollar, the U.S. Commerce Department
\nreported on Wednesday that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed to
\n$51.56 billion, beating the downwardly revised $53.55 billion
\nAugust shortfall and the $53.50 billion consensus.<\/p>\n
Dealers here said a delay in settlement for spot transactions
\ndone on Thursday and on Friday also encouraged players to buy
\nmore dollars against the rupiah on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Settlement usually takes place two days after a transaction is
\ndone. But due to the upcoming holidays, settlement for on
\nThursday and on Friday will now take place after next week.<\/p>\n
The local currency market will be closed for the whole of next
\nweek due to the Muslim Idul Fitri holiday.<\/p>\n
Dealers expect the dollar to trade between Rp 9,050 and Rp
\n9,100 on Friday.<\/p>",
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