Rupiah higher, Asian monies mostly down late

Rupiah higher, Asian monies mostly down late

JAKARTA (Dow Jones): The Indonesian rupiah closed slightly higher Thursday helped profit taking on the dollar following its rise Wednesday and early Thursday.

The dollar closed at Rp 9,348 in Asia, down from Rp 9,365 late Wednesday. The U.S. currency rose to an intraday high of Rp 9,408 rupiah.

Dealers added state banks - believed to act on the behalf of Bank Indonesia - sold the dollar sporadically which resulted in the dollar's slide.

"We will continue to take profit until the dollar is at Rp 9,300 and will buy the unit back at the level," said a dealer with a foreign bank. "The dollar is still on track to test Rp 9,450 resistance as local companies still need dollars for year- end debt payment."

Meanwhile, Most Asian currencies were pushed lower Thursday by a combination of local factors and general dollar firmness globally.

In Taipei, the New Taiwan dollar slipped as investor pessimism over banking-sector reforms and political instability sent local stock prices tumbling by nearly 5 percent.

The dollar closed at NT$32.196, up from NT$32.176 late Wednesday. The U.S. dollar had hit a high of NT$32.260 in intraday trading, but was capped by central bank intervention, dealers said.

The central bank accounted for roughly half of Thursday's volume of US$674 million, a dealer at a foreign bank estimated.

Market sentiment toward the New Taiwan dollar was dealt a blow when a central bank deputy governor acknowledged Wednesday that the asset quality of Taiwan's new private banks was weak, said Chi Lo, currency strategist at Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong.

"Taiwan over the past 15 years has had no structural policy to cleanse the banking sector of its bad debts," Lo said. "This time around the structural problems are more obvious and they're even catching the eye of authorities," he said.

Against the South Korean won, the dollar closed at 1,138.30 won, up from Wednesday's close of 1,135.70 won.

Intraday trading was driven in part by U.S. dollar-buying by importers and overseas players in the forward market, dealers said.

The Philippine peso was pressured by corporate demand for U.S. dollars and a growing view that the country's political turmoil may continue for some time.

The peso had rallied in the past two trading sessions on hopes that President Joseph Estrada might be forced from office quickly following his impeachment Monday by the House of Representatives.

But the outlook is now less certain, with a bitter battle expected when Estrada stands trial in the Senate next month over corruption allegations.

The dollar closed at 49.890 pesos on the Philippine Dealing System, up from 49.800 pesos at the previous close.

The Singapore dollar and Thai baht couldn't overcome the general firmness the U.S. dollar has been enjoying lately in global markets, dealers said.

Late in Asia, the U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7482, up from S$1.7438 late Wednesday.

A stronger-than-expected 16.4 percent rise in Singapore's October non-oil exports failed to blunt the strength of the U.S. dollar, which remained well bid in Asia against the backdrop of rising oil prices and potentially higher U.S. interest rates.

Against the Thai baht, the U.S. dollar was quoted at 43.865 baht, up from 43.605 baht late Wednesday.