Asian monies mostly up as Singapore dollar leads rise
Asian monies mostly up as Singapore dollar leads rise
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Most Asian currencies were higher late Friday, with the Singapore dollar outshining its regional peers as the U.S. currency lost ground against the euro, dealers said.
The euro's ability to extend its gains above $0.89, after breaking that level in overnight trading, provided some support to regional foreign exchange markets, especially the Singapore dollar and the Thai baht, dealers said.
The Indonesian rupiah ended higher Friday on dollar selling by state banks which negated any impact from the delay in the disbursement of loans by the International Monetary Fund.
News that the IMF needs until at least next year to reach agreement with Jakarta on economic reforms before releasing the next $400 million under its loan program to Indonesia had little impact on the market.
Most players had expected the IMF to delay the funds, which were set to be released this month, due to Indonesia's slow implementation of economic reforms under the program.
The dollar closed Asian trade at Rp 9,380 in Asia, down from its close Thursday at Rp 9,430.
State banks sold dollars in thin pre-weekend trade, possibly on behalf of the central bank. Bank Indonesia has said it will defend the rupiah, but it rarely makes any announcements when it intervenes in the foreign exchange market.
The rupiah, which is off over 30 percent since the start of the year amid political instability and a slow economic recovery, is set to trade in a tight Rp 9,300 to Rp 9,550 range to the dollar next week, traders predict.
Left out in the cold, the South Korean won was dragged down by strong onshore dollar demand and a slump on the local bourse, dealers said.
Riding on the euro's coattails, the Singapore dollar, a favorite pick among currency analysts, strengthened to S$1.7350 against its U.S. counterpart, compared with S$1.7392 late Thursday. Singapore is expected to weather the global economic slowdown next year.
Market participants were undeterred by reports of intervention by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, for two days earlier in the week, to curb the currency's advance.
But bids by local banks around S$1.7360 to S$1.7365, which fueled a rebound in the U.S. dollar to as high as S$1.7394, triggered market speculation that they were buying on behalf of the MAS, which was probably trying to stymie the Singapore dollar's rise, dealers said.
"Many interbank players think they could have been in down there," a dealer said.
The baht also found support from the Thai bankruptcy court's rejection Friday of all objections raised by Thai Petrochemical Industry PLC's (H.TPE) management against a $3.7 billion debt restructuring plan.
The dollar was at 43.425 baht late Friday, down from 43.495 baht late Thursday.
Seasonal remittance inflows from Filipino overseas workers bolstered the Philippine peso, which barely reacted to the an expected cut in the central bank's overnight rates and the announcement of a higher budget deficit for the first 11 months of this year.
The dollar closed at 50.030 pesos on the Philippine Dealing System, down from 50.085 pesos Thursday.
The Taiwanese central bank's defense of the local currency against the onslaught from the offshore non-deliverable forward market buoyed the New Taiwan dollar, dealers said.
The U.S. dollar ended at NT$33.075, down marginally from Thursday's close of NT$33.077.
Heavy dollar buying by local importers and banks, together with a 2.4 percent slide on the Seoul bourse, combined to depress the South Korean won, dealers said.
The dollar closed at 1,207 won, up from 1,202 won late Thursday.