Asian monies mostly down; IDR buoyed

Asian monies mostly down; IDR buoyed

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Most Asian currencies were weaker, though off their morning lows, as they remained under the sway of the wavering Japanese yen, dealers said.

The South Korean won, the New Taiwan dollar, the Singapore dollar, the Thai baht and the Philippine peso felt the pain of the yen's slide to a fresh 20-month low overnight, amid renewed concerns over the Japanese financial system.

Shielded from the region's woes, the Indonesian rupiah was slightly firmer after the central bank signaled its resolve to defend the currency, by imposing a hefty penalty on a foreign bank in Jakarta for allegedly violating its new controversial rules on rupiah trading.

The other Asian currencies crumbled on the yen's overnight fall, but regained part of their losses - albeit temporarily - when the yen recovered on the Tokyo stock market's rebound late in the day.

The Singapore dollar was among the hardest hit, floundering to as low as S$1.7679 against its U.S. counterpart at the open, its weakest level since September 1998.

But fears of incurring the wrath of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and profit-taking in the U.S. currency provided some reprieve for the local dollar, dealers said.

Around 0849 GMT, the U.S. dollar was at S$1.7667, up from S$1.7597 late Wednesday.

Late Thursday, the dollar was quoted at Y120.81, below Y121.08 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar was at Y120.22 late Wednesday in Tokyo.

The New Taiwan dollar finished at its lowest level since Jan. 20. The U.S. dollar closed at NT$32.555, up from NT$32.520 Wednesday, but down from its intraday high of NT$32.615.

In Seoul, the dollar finished at 1,282.3 won, up from Wednesday's close of 1,277.8 won. The won had hit an intraday low of 1,290 won, following the stock market losses on Wall Street Wednesday and the yen's fall to a 20-month low.

While Asian currencies are being engulfed by the renewed pessimism that have swept through the region in the past week, authorities in Thailand and Indonesia are showing their resolve to penalize those who defied their recent restrictions to protect their respective currencies.

While Indonesia's move to punish a foreign bank in Jakarta had made the others more wary of pushing the rupiah much lower, there was little reaction in the Thai currency market, dealers said.

The Thai central bank has banned one bank - which wasn't named - from the repurchase market for 10 days, effective immediately, for repeatedly submitting inaccurate reports. Effective March 1, the central bank imposed strict disclosure requirements asking banks to name counterparties in all transactions and to specify the purpose of the transactions.

The Thai currency remained pressured at 43.875 baht against the dollar, compared with 43.580 baht late Wednesday.

In contrast, the rupiah found some support as banks became wary of trading the currency, following Bank Indonesia's move to penalize a foreign bank for violating the central bank's rupiah rules.

The dollar was at Rp 10,060, down from Rp 10,150 late Wednesday.

On the Philippine Dealing System, the dollar closed at 48.430 pesos, up from 48.200 pesos Wednesday. The dollar hit an intraday high of 48.490 pesos.