Rupiah ends lower in moderate trading on dollar demand
Rupiah ends lower in moderate trading on dollar demand
JAKARTA (Dow Jones): The Indonesian rupiah closed lower Monday in moderate trading on local company demand for the dollar, traders said.
The dollar closed at Rp 8,970 rupiah, down from Rp 8,890 late Friday.
In addition to regional dollar strength, traders said concerns over Indonesia's huge public debt burden pushed down the rupiah.
Finance Minister Prijadi Praptosuhardjo Monday said Indonesia's government debt stood at 99 percent of gross domestic product, and forecast it would fall to 86 percent in 2001.
"It's a bit worrisome for the government," said a foreign trader.
State banks kept the edge off the dollar's rise by selling dollars in the afternoon, but the upward trend seems likely to continue, traders said.
If the regional trend continues, the dollar may test Rp 9,000 this week, but it is likely to meet resistance around Rp 9,050, the foreign trader said.
Elsewhere, most Asian currencies fell, with the Thai baht and the Philippine peso recording the steepest declines amid political uncertainty in those nations.
The South Korean won and the Singapore dollar also declined slightly, as stock markets in those countries gave up a portion of last Friday's gains.
In Bangkok, the dollar hit the key 44.00 baht psychological resistance level, rising to its highest level against the Thai currency since June 1998 on strong buying by U.S. investment banks and Singapore players. Traders said baht sellers were emboldened by the national holiday in Thailand, which kept the central bank out of the market.
Near the end of trading, the dollar was quoted at 43.990 baht, up from 43.555 baht in Asia last Friday.
In Manila, the Philippine peso continued to lose ground against the dollar as the Philippine Congress took its first step Monday to consider the impeachment of President Joseph Estrada on allegations he received millions of dollars from illegal gambling operators.
The peso fell to an intraday low of 48.97 pesos against the dollar Monday, near its all-time low of 49.00 pesos set earlier this month. Late in Asia, the dollar was quoted at 48.94 pesos, up from 48.74 pesos last Friday.
In Seoul, the Korean won dipped to an eight-month low against the dollar, plunging to an intraday low of 1,139.40 won on selling by local and foreign banks amid the slide in the Korean stock market and ongoing worries about rising crude-oil prices.
At the end of Asian trading, the dollar closed at 1,138.50 won, up from Friday's close of 1,128.50 won. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock price index dropped 17.60 points, or 3.22 percent, to end at 528.37.
In Singapore, the dollar was well-bid against the Singapore dollar amid tight bid-offer spreads quoted for the U.S. dollar- Singapore dollar pair's debut on the electronic broking system (EBS) Monday.
"Today's debut of the dollar-sing on EBS went smoothly and buying interest was there," BNP Paribas' Loo said. "This week, I'm expecting the U.S. dollar to move in a range of S$1.7500- S$1.7600."
The Singapore's Straits Times Index's moderate decline also weighed on the Singapore dollar. Late in Asia, the STI was down 9.18 points, or 0.48%, at 1,914.49. The U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7557, up from $1.7505 last Friday.
In Taipei, the New Taiwan dollar bucked the overall trend of weakness for Asian currencies as Taiwan's central bank is understood to have intervened to support its currency in the Asian session, dealers said.
In late Asian trading, the dollar was quoted at NT$32.081, down from NT$32.143 last Friday.