SE Asian monies steady against U.S. dollar

SE Asian monies steady against U.S. dollar

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Southeast Asian currencies were mostly
steady against the U.S. dollar in late Asian trading Monday, with
the short-term outlook for the region's currencies varying
between flat to slightly higher, market participants say.

With no major outcome from the Group of Seven (G-7) meeting of
industrialized nations over the weekend and the focus turning to
other emerging financial problems in places like Latin America,
there won't be much selling interest in southeast Asian
currencies for now, said market players.

All eyes are also focused on the annual meeting between the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank which kicks off
late Monday in the U.S.

The baht led the gainers late Monday. The U.S. dollar is at
39.1750 baht in late offshore trading, down from 39.50 baht in
early trading Monday and 39.52 baht late Friday.

The boost to the Thai baht Monday came as key cabinet
ministers retained their portfolios, including the finance and
commerce ministerial posts.

Thailand announced Monday a major cabinet reshuffle in which
the government brought in the second largest opposition party in
a move that will boost the ruling coalition.

The Singapore dollar and the Indonesian rupiah also gained
ground against the U.S. dollar by late Monday compared with
earlier levels.

The issue of a S$300 million bond by World Bank's
International Finance Corp. Monday may have added to the positive
tone on the Singapore dollar, said market players. In addition,
the S$1.68 level to the U.S. dollar is seen as a very strong
psychological support in the short term, said market players.

"The fact that an internationally reputable body like the IFC
can issue a bond in Singapore dollars here is a morale-booster to
Singapore," said Lee at MCM Asia Pacific.

In late trading), the dollar is at S$1.6853, down from
S$1.6885 late Friday.

Similarly, the rupiah gained ground against the U.S. dollar
Monday on a newspaper report that the government is mulling a
monitoring system on capital flows.

"It's just some sort of reporting and not the Malaysian type
of capital control," a dealer at another U.S. bank said. "So it's
viewed positively," he said.

At late Asian trading, the dollar is at 10,475 rupiah, down
from 10,675 in late-Friday trading.

However, bucking the trend, the Philippine peso closed
slightly lower against the dollar Monday. Banks dominated
trading, with commercial demand for the U.S. currency remaining
low, traders said.

At the close, the dollar averaged 43.906 peso on the
Philippine Dealing System, up 3 centavos from Friday's average of
43.876 peso. The dollar was last traded at 43.855 peso.