Jakarta shares end down on weak Asian markets, oil hike worries
Jakarta shares end down on weak Asian markets, oil hike worries
Dow Jones, Jakarta
Indonesian shares ended lower Monday on swift profit-taking after sharp gains in the previous session, driven partly by losses across Asian markets amid worries over rising oil prices, dealers said.
"The market ran out of steam after Friday's gains," a trader with Kuo Capital Securities said.
Fears that the higher oil prices may force the new government to raise fuel prices also dampened sentiment, he added.
The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite ended down 4.139 points, or 0.5 percent, at 846.635. The main index rose 2 percent Friday.
Decliners led gainers 82 to 34, while 69 stocks were unchanged. Volume was 1.4 billion shares valued at Rp 890 billion.
Bellwether Telekomunikasi Indonesia led decliners, down 1.2 percent at Rp 4,300 on profit-taking. The stock gained 2.3 percent Friday.
Profit-taking also hit cement maker Semen Gresik, down 1.9 percent at Rp 10,450, and its rival Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa, down 2.5 percent at Rp 1,925.
Dealers said they expect the market Tuesday to trade flat to slightly lower on further profit-taking.
Meanwhile, the rupiah ended higher amid bearish sentiment over the dollar globally.
The dollar closed at Rp 9,060, down from its close Friday at 9,095.
Against major currencies, the dollar fell to new multi-month lows on mounting worries that overseas investors may not continue to fund the U.S. current account deficit, which would hurt U.S. economic growth.
The rupiah, however, failed to stage significant gains due to dollar demand from local companies for month-end needs, dealers said.
Market participants were also reluctant to push the dollar down further as they are waiting to see how the new government performs over the next three months in improving the investment climate and the country's judiciary system.
"President (Susilo Bambang) Yudhoyono must promptly show the public that he's working hard to fulfill his campaign promises, otherwise the honeymoon period will be very short," one dealer said.
Dealers expect the dollar to trade between 9,025 and 9,100 Tuesday, with the market expected to continue watching the dollar's movement with regard to major rivals for direction.