JP/13/Stock

JP/13/Stock

RI shares end mixed, but index up at new high

Dow Jones
Jakarta

Indonesian shares ended mixed on Thursday, but gains in
selected blue chips pushed the main index to a fresh all-time
closing high, dealers said.

Investors continued accumulating cigarette and banking stocks,
but profit-taking dragged telecommunications blue chips down
along with other small stocks, they said.

Underlying sentiment, however, remains positive due to a fall
in interest rates. Many analysts predict that the benchmark
weighted average rate of the one-month Bank Indonesia notes will
fall further after falling to 8.06 percent in a weekly auction on
Wednesday from 8.24 percent previously, amid easing inflationary
pressure and ample liquidity among banks.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index ended up 6.890
points, or 0.9 percent, at 763.453, but off an intra-day high of
764.042.

The index's last closing high was 729.151 points, recorded
July 10, 1997.

Decliners led gainers 82 to 63, with 71 stocks unchanged.

Volume stood at 2.03 billion shares valued at Rp 1.154
trillion (US$137 million).

Dealers said investors bought bank shares, which were
relatively cheaper than other stocks.

Bank Mandiri, the nation's largest bank by assets, rose
Rp 100, or 8 percent, to Rp 1,350, and Bank Rakyat Indonesia
gained Rp 50, or 3.2 percent, at Rp 1,600, and Bank Central Asia
increased Rp 25, or 0.7 percent, to Rp 3,725.

Cigarette maker PT Gudang Garam rose Rp 300, or 1.9 percent,
to Rp 15,600 on hopes of higher sales after the government kept
the cigarette excise tax unchanged this year.

Profit-taking has hit telecommunications blue chips after
recent sharp gains.

PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), the largest stock by
market capitalization, fell Rp 100, or 1.4 percent, to Rp 7,300,
and its rival PT Indonesia Satellite Corp. (Indosat) dropped Rp
200, or 1.2 percent, to Rp 16,550.

Tin miner PT Timah edged down Rp 50, or 1.9 percent, to Rp
2,475, and supermarket and department store operator PT Matahari
Putra Prima lost 3.5 percent, or Rp 25, at Rp 700.

Dealers said they expect the market to remain higher Friday,
but looming profit-taking may slow the rise.

The rupiah ended lower on Thursday as the dollar strengthened
across Asia.

The dollar closed at Rp 8,365, up from its close Wednesday at
Rp 8,340.

Players took their cue from the dollar's regional strength,
which came on the back of new measures introduced by the Korean
authorities to restrict offshore selling of dollars for won via
the non-deliverable forwards market.

Under the plan, Korean financial institutions can't buy
dollars via the NDF market from offshore players of more than 10
percent of their purchases as of Wednesday.

Indonesia's booming stock market means the rupiah should find
support Friday as foreign investors buy rupiah for dollars to
fund their share purchases.

Dealers expect the dollar to trade between Rp 8,350 and
Rp 8,380 Friday.