Shares end higher, led by gains in Medco

Shares end higher, led by gains in Medco

Indonesian shares ended higher on Thursday led by gains in gas and oil company Medco Energi ahead of its plan to sell a 30 percent stake on the Luxembourg bourse next month, dealers said.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange's Composite Index ended up 0.7 percent at 1186.614 -- another fresh high. Many analysts now expect it to break above the key 1,200-level very soon.

"The market managed to maintain its uptrend momentum despite sporadic profit taking by local funds," said an analyst with a local securities firm.

Decliners led gainers 73 to 55, with 77 stocks unchanged. Volume fell to 1.7 billion shares, valued at Rp 1.24 trillion, compared with 2.2 billion shares valued at Rp 1.7 trillion Wednesday.

Medco jumped 11 percent to Rp 3,775 on expectations that Encore Ltd., which owns 85.5 percent of Medco, will sell a 30 percent stake in Medco at a premium.

Bellwether Telkom gained 1.8 percent to Rp 5,700 on a rebound and expectations of improved first-half earnings. Telkom is expected to announce its earnings on Friday.

Elsewhere, shares in Bank Rakyat Indonesia gained 4.2 percent to Rp 3,125 after the company said its first-half net profit rose 13 percent on year.

On the down side, profit taking hit shares in carmaker Astra International, which fell 1.1 percent, to Rp 13,000.

Dealers said local retail investors also took profit in many small-capitalized stocks that had gained recently.

Among these, technology company Astra Graphia fell 9 percent to Rp 355 after gaining 30 percent in the previous three sessions.

Dealers expect shares to trade higher on Friday led by further buying in Medco.