Profit taking pushes stock prices down on JSX

Profit taking pushes stock prices down on JSX

JAKARTA (JP): Stock prices on the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) fell last week, following the profit taking action in some big- capped issues.

The JSX Composite Index hit a low of 486.48 on Thursday before rebounding slightly to close the week at 488.32, a drop of 6.15 points (1.2 percent) from last week's opening of 494.47.

Market sentiment is likely to remain weak on the lack of fresh leads in the market.

Intensified concern regarding the privatization of Telkom drove investors to the sideline last week, due to their worry over the market's ability to absorb the large domestic placement.

Newcomers Komatsu, a producer of heavy engineering equipment, and Miwon, a food seasoning manufacturer, failed to make impressive debuts due to generally weak market sentiments. Komatsu closed at Rp 2,000, down from its initial offering price of Rp 2,100 on the first day of listing. Miwon plunged to Rp 1,450 (-34.5 percent) from its opening of Rp 1,950 on the first day of trading, before touching its bottom level of Rp 1,225 on the second day. The company, together with the lead underwriter, was called by the Indonesian Capital Market Advisory Board to explain the drastic drop on Miwon's share price. The counter made a modest rebound the next day and closed the week at Rp 1,425.

Tambang Timah continued to rise after rallying on the last few days following a rebound in London. On the other hand, Kalbe Farma was under heavy selling pressure over the last week's trading due to market skepticism that the company's earning would not meet expectations. Selling pressure was also seen in other blue-chip counters including Sampoerna, Gudang Garam and Gadjah Tunggal.

This week, the market is expected to go sideways and not break its support level of 485. Some selective buying on oversold stocks should be seen. However, liquidity on the secondary market will only increase after the listing of Telkom.

Local players were on the speculative buying side. Counters which were actively traded include Tambang Timah, Miwon, Elang Realty, Gadjah Tunggal, BDNI, SMART, CMNP, Bank Danamon, Indorayon, Indofood, Sampoerna and Lippo Land Development.

Foreign players kept on the sideline and were forced to sell in the sliding market. Counters which saw active trading include Komatsu, Gadjah Tunggal, Indah Kiat, BDNI, Semen Gresik, Mulia Industrindo, Indorayon, Darya Varia, Indofood, Sampoerna and Kalbe Farma.

Average daily turnover on the regular board decreased to 20.8 million shares worth Rp 58 billion (US$25.4 million) last week from 20.6 million shares worth Rp 58.4 billion in the previous week. Last week's total turnover also decreased to 180.6 million shares valued at Rp 567.7 billion from 169.4 million shares valued at Rp 575 billion in the previous week.

Some of the best performers last week were Langgeng Makmur and Tancho (each up Rp 500), Ficorinvest Bank (up Rp 400), Tambang Timah (up Rp 350) and Ultra Jaya (up Rp 200). The biggest losers were Modern Photo (down Rp 1,000), Gudang Garam (down Rp 900), Miwon (down Rp 525), Bank Papan Sejahtera and HM Sampoerna (each down Rp 500). Gainers outnumbered losers by 44 to 72, while 35 counters remained unchanged.

-- Sigma Batara