Rupiah slightly down late as Asian monies mostly higher

Rupiah slightly down late as Asian monies mostly higher

JAKARTA (Dow Jones): The Indonesian rupiah weakened slightly
late Thursday, barely reacting to a slew of news throughout the
day as it showed signs of resuming its downward trend following a
strong rebound over the past two days, dealers said.

The market reacted with indifference to the potential arrest
of former President Soeharto's youngest son, after he defied a
summons by prosecutors to begin serving his prison term for
corruption.

The dollar was wedged within a tight range of Rp 9,135 to Rp
9,175 all day.

Around 0900 GMT, the dollar was at Rp 9,170, up from Rp 9,130
late Wednesday.

The rupiah resisted the upward pressure from the Singapore
dollar and the Thai baht, which extended their recent recoveries
as market participants unwound long dollar positions, dealers
said.

In the case of the Indonesian currency, dollar demand from
local corporates and offshore participants around Rp 9,130 to Rp
9,140 provided a floor for the U.S. currency, which had reversed
sharply after it failed to break above the psychologically
sensitive Rp 9,500 resistance level Tuesday.

"I would expect (the dollar's) support around Rp 9,300 to Rp
9,120 to hold," said a European bank dealer in Singapore. "We'll
probably move higher, maybe back up to around Rp 9,200 to Rp
9,210."

Meanwhile, most Asian currencies strengthened Thursday due to
a mix of local factors and a new bearish sentiment toward the
U.S. dollar.

In North Asia, new hopes that financial restructuring efforts
will be successful lifted the won. The New Taiwan dollar got a
boost from a growing view that President Chen Shui-ban won't be
removed from office.

Also lending support to the currencies was a strengthening of
the yen against the dollar.

In Southeast Asia, the Singapore dollar moved higher as market
players who had been on a dollar-buying binge in recent weeks
began to back off on concerns that they "may have gone too far,"
a dealer at an Asian bank said.

The Philippine peso wasn't traded because markets in Manila
were closed for a holiday.

In Seoul, South Korean banks are slated to announce Friday a
list of companies they deem nonviable, and which have to undergo
liquidation, selloffs, or enter court receivership.

"People are hoping for some good news on reform and
restructuring when banks release their list of nonviable
companies tomorrow," said Frank Gong, foreign exchange strategist
at Bank of America in Hong Kong.

Against the South Korean won, the U.S. dollar closed at
1,133.5 won, down from 1,135.9 won Wednesday.

In Taipei, the U.S. dollar fell to NT$32.271 from NT$32.363 a
day earlier.

The New Taiwan dollar also was helped by rising stock prices,
a dealer said. The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock
Exchange closed up 201.06 points, or 3.7 percent.

The Thai baht, which had strengthened for most of the day in
line with the Singapore dollar, ended the day little changed.

Late in Asian trading, the dollar was quoted at 43.640 baht,
up slightly from 43.635 baht late Thursday. Dealers said the baht
gave up some of its gains late in the day when foreign exchange
trading opened in London.

In Bangkok, Thai Deputy Premier Supachai Panitchpakdi said
Thursday the recent weakness in the baht was a reflection of the
dollar's strength, noting that the Thai currency hasn't weakened
as much as some other regional currencies like the Philippine
peso.