Asian monies mostly weaker as rupiah dives

Asian monies mostly weaker as rupiah dives

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Asian currencies were mostly weaker
late Tuesday, as market-soothing words from Indonesian President
Abdurrahman Wahid helped stabilize the embattled rupiah.

Wahid called a news conference to refute reports that he was
targeting opposition lawmakers as part of an investigation into
corruption and riot-inciting in Indonesia.

Comments the Indonesian President, more popularly called Gus
Dur, had issued over the weekend regarding the investigation were
misinterpreted, he said.

"They (legislators) will be questioned only as witnesses. My
other statement was twisted for political purposes," Wahid said
at the news conference.

The rupiah, which had touched an almost 16-month low of Rp
9,000 to the dollar in early trading, staged a modest recovery
after Wahid's comments to finish the day at Rp 8,600, unchanged
from Monday's close.

Gus Dur nonetheless acknowledged that the political infighting
and sectarian violence in the Maluku islands is taking its toll
on the currency.

"The rupiah weakness is because the market knows that the
problem faced by Indonesia is very complicated, that there is
disharmony among the people of Indonesia," he said.

Currency dealers said the rupiah will remain under pressure
until Indonesia's political and economic situation improves.

"We are worried that if this political mudslinging doesn't end
or get better, confidence in Indonesia will be severely eroded
and the rupiah could be headed toward the 10,000 level in one
month's time," said Syetarn Hansakul, economist at WestLB Bank in
Singapore.

The Philippine peso, which also is suffering from negative
investor sentiment, also traded lower against the U.S. dollar.

The dollar climbed to a 21-month high of 43.600 pesos in
intraday trading as the narrowing differential between U.S. and
Philippine interest rates prompted investors to shift their
holdings to dollars.

By the close, the dollar edged back to 43.535 pesos, up from
43.530 pesos at Monday's finish.

The South Korean won declined on the heels of a weaker yen and
fears of a strike next week by employees at local financial
institutions, traders said.

The dollar closed at 1,115.30 won, up from 1,113.80 won a day
earlier.

The won also took a hit from a drop in the Korea Composite
Stock Price Index, or Kospi, which closed down 16.68 points, or 2
percent, to 818.53.

The softer yen and falling stock prices put pressure on the
New Taiwan dollar as well.

The U.S. dollar closed at NT$30.822, up from NT$30.812 late
Monday.

The Thai baht closed slightly higher Tuesday as investors took
profit on the back of the dollar's recent strong performance,
traders said.

The dollar finished at 39.355 baht, down from 39.362 baht at
the Asian close Monday.

The Singapore dollar finished lower as corporate dollar buying
kept the U.S. dollar well bid, dealers said.

Late Tuesday, the U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7327, up from
S$1.7317 late Monday in Asia.

Market participants were reluctant to push the U.S. currency
much higher because of fears the Monetary Authority of Singapore
might intervene at levels above S$1.7340, a dealer at a European
bank said.