Asian monies mixed, rupiah strengthens
Asian monies mixed, rupiah strengthens
Alan Yonan Jr., Dow Jones, Singapore
Improving prospects for the privatization of state-held assets in Indonesia helped the rupiah climb to a near five-month high against the dollar Tuesday. Other Asian currencies were mixed in rangebound trading.
The rupiah broke through the psychological 10,000 per dollar barrier as investors looked to the government's impending sale of its 51 percent stake in PT Bank Central Asia as a sign that privatization efforts are beginning to take hold.
Late in Asian trading the dollar was quoted at Rp 9,980, down from Rp 10,075 late Monday, and its weakest finish since Rp 9,970 on Oct. 15.
"Sentiment is improving on the feeling that the BCA sale could mark a turning point in asset sales," said Nizam Idris, regional economist at IDEAglobal. "This will be a significant investment coming after a long drought."
Indonesian officials are hoping the auction of BCA will help resurrect foreign interest in the Indonesian economy that disappeared after the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.
The rupiah has been slowly appreciating since the start of the year, exhibiting relative stability following several years of tremendous volatility.
That stability has eased the concerns of Indonesian companies with dollar-denominated debt, Idris said. In the past when confidence in the rupiah was fragile, those firms would stock up on U.S. dollars in advance, knowing a weakening rupiah would increase the cost of debt repayment down the road.
But that phenomenon appears to have subsided, Idris said. "People are finding it quite effective to be holding rupiah with higher rates of return on Indonesian assets."
The New Taiwan dollar was pushed higher by foreign inflows into the local stock market.
The U.S. dollar closed at NT$35.069, compared with the previous close of NT$35.090. The currencies traded in a narrow range of NT$35.062 to NT$35.062.
Foreign investors bought a net NT$15.5 billion worth of local equities on Tuesday, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
The South Korean won was similarly buoyed by gains in local stocks, as well as improving prospects for the economy.
The dollar ended at 1,316.4 won Tuesday versus 1,318.2 won Monday. The trading range was 1,314.6 won to 1,316.8 won. Foreign investors bought a net 295.929 billion won worth of shares.
South Korean business confidence rose to a record high in March according to a survey by the Federation of Korean Industries. The Federation's index rose to 141.9 in March from 110.7 in February.
The Philippine peso edged lower, one day after hitting a new high for the year against the dollar.
The dollar closed at 51.160 pesos on the Philippine Dealing System, up from 51.065 pesos Monday. It moved within a range of 51.040-51.170 pesos.
Traders said corporate demand for dollars was strong at levels below 51.100 pesos, pulling down the peso.
The Singapore dollar was little changed against its U.S. counterpart.
Near the end of Asian trading the U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.8290, down slightly from S$1.8292 late Monday.
The U.S. dollar hit an intraday high of S$1.8305 at midmorning on U.S. dollar short covering, but then weakened in tandem with its slide against the yen.
The Thai baht weakened on expectations that equity related inflows would decline following profit taking in the local stock market.
Late in Asia the dollar was quoted at 43.665 baht, up from 43.600 baht late Monday.