Rupiah, Thai baht rise against U.S. dollar
Rupiah, Thai baht rise against U.S. dollar
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): The dollar advanced decisively against the South Korean won Thursday, while other Asian currencies finished mixed during regional trading hours.
Resisting the dollar's upward movement were the New Taiwan dollar, Indonesian rupiah and Thai baht, which strengthened modestly.
The Indonesian rupiah ended a touch higher Thursday due to dollar selling by state banks, but healthy dollar demand by local companies erased most of the rupiah's earlier gain.
After falling to an intraday low of Rp 9,400, the dollar closed at Rp 9,430 in Asian trading, down slightly from Rp 9,450 late Wednesday.
State banks, most notably Bank Mandiri and Bank Rakyat Indonesia, actively sold the dollar. Dealers believed they were selling on behalf of the central bank to ease the pressure on the rupiah.
Local companies, however, took the dollar's slide as an opportunity to buy the unit.
"Many dollar bids appeared between Rp 9,400 and Rp 9,425," said a dealer with a foreign bank.
Dealers described dollar demand as genuine as speculators are reluctant to trade ahead of the year end.
Dealers expect the dollar to trade between Rp 9,400 and Rp 9,450 Friday, as Bank Indonesia is expected to stay vigilant in its defense of the rupiah.
The won continued its downward slide after rallying against the dollar earlier in the week. The U.S. currency closed above the psychologically important 1,200 won level for the first time in six sessions.
At the close of trading the dollar was quoted at 1,202.0 won, up from 1,193,8 won at Wednesday's finish.
The Philippine peso weakened slightly, but finished within its trading range of recent weeks.
Although investor concerns about political stability in the Philippines has kept pressure on the peso, the currency is likely to remain wedged between 49.3 and 50.5 per dollar until there is a clearer idea of the outcome in President Joseph Estrada's impeachment trial on corruption charges, DBS Bank said in a research report.
The dollar closed at 50.085 pesos on the Philippine Dealing System, up from 49.975 pesos and the end of trading Wednesday.
The U.S. dollar rose against its Singapore counterpart after suspected intervention by the Monetary Authority of Singapore in offshore markets overnight to restrain the local currency's recent appreciation.
Near the end of Asian trading, the U.S. dollar was quoted at S$1.7392, up from S$1.7374 late Wednesday.
The New Taiwan dollar benefited from central bank support and squaring of U.S. dollar long-positions by corporations.
The U.S. dollar closed at NT$33.077, compared with NT$33.081 the day before.
The central bank allowed the U.S. dollar to venture as high as NT$33.130 in the morning session before intervening to cap it at NT$33.100 in afternoon trading.
The central bank sold a total of US$150 million to support the local dollar, dealers estimated.
The Thai baht edged higher as the threat of an offshore swap squeeze on the currency kept speculators out of the market. Against the Thai baht, the dollar was quoted at 43.495 baht in late Asian trading, down from 43.625 baht late Wednesday.