Asian monies mixed in quiet trade ahead of U.S. data
Asian monies mixed in quiet trade ahead of U.S. data
Dow Jones, Singapore
Asian currencies were mixed against the U.S. dollar in lackluster trade on Friday, with many market players reluctant to take large positions before the release of key U.S. employment data later in the day.
The South Korean won, New Taiwan dollar and Indonesian rupiah strengthened modestly. The Philippine peso and Thai baht posted slight declines, while the Singapore dollar was little changed.
Most currency pairs traded in tight ranges.
Investors will be looking at the government's October jobs report for clues as to the sustainability of the U.S. economic recovery.
A host of positive economic data has helped underpin the dollar over the past month, and a solid increase in nonfarm payroll jobs would continue to support the U.S. currency in the short term, analysts said.
The market consensus is for 65,000 increase in nonfarm payroll jobs for October, which would be the second consecutive rise in hiring after eight straight months of declines. But there was enough uncertainty over the report to keep many foreign exchange market players on the sidelines.
In Seoul, the won got a lift from foreign inflows into the local stock market and dollar sales by exporters.
The dollar traded between 1,181 won and 1,182 won for most of the session before slipping to its closing level of 1,179.3 won in the last hour of trading. That was below Thursday's close of 1,181.0 won.
The government helped offset demand for the won by purchasing dollars in small amounts, a dealer at Koram Bank said.
The Singapore dollar was similarly range-bound, finishing the Asian session about where it ended a day earlier. Late in the day, the U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7412 compared with S$1.7415 late on Thursday. It traded between S$1.7405 and S$1.7420.
The Philippine peso ended a four-day rally as the ongoing impeachment proceedings against the country's chief justice dented sentiment toward the currency.
The dollar closed at 55.27 peso on the Philippine Dealing System, up from Thursday's close of 55.09 peso.
Dollar selling by exporters and foreigners seeking to buy Taiwan stocks gave a modest boost to the New Taiwan dollar in a quiet session.
The U.S. dollar finished the session at NT$34.012, down a touch from NT$34.020 from a day earlier. Trading volume was a relatively light US$293 million.
Demand for the Indonesian rupiah perked up on expectations of further capital inflows linked to government asset sales.
Late in Asia the dollar was quoted at Rp 8,485 compared with Rp 8,495 late on Thursday.
A consortium consisting of South Korea's Kookmin Bank and Singapore's Temasek Holdings is expected to soon transfer their funds to Indonesia as part of their purchase of 51 percent stake in nationalized Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII).
Speculators bought the rupiah, anticipating a rise in the currency when the consortium eventually completes the foreign exchange leg of its purchase.
In addition, state-owned gas utility Perusahaan Gas Negara, or PGN, said on Thursday that it would offer up to 1.69 billion shares through an initial public offering early next month, which is expected to attract interest from foreign investors.