Indonesia rupiah gains on local elections, Asian equities downbeat
Rupiah gains up to 0.5%
Manila stocks hit 2-week low
Bank of Korea surprises with rate cut
By Adwitiya Srivastava
Nov 28 (Reuters) -The Indonesian rupiah led gains among mixed emerging Asian currencies on Thursday as results of local elections eased worries about political uncertainty, while the central bank continues to support the currency.
The rupiah IDR= added as much as 0.5% against a weaker U.S. dollar, while equities in Jakarta .JKSE dropped 0.4%.
Candidates backed by new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto look set to secure victories in key regional elections, with the exception of Jakarta, which analysts said should make it easier to implement and reinforce his political moves and agendas.
"The rupiah is up because of expectations on the election to be settled without significant turbulence," said Fakhrul Fulvian, economist at Trigmeah Securities.
"We should have good transition in local governments early next year with Prabowo's coalition winning most of the provinces."
Bank Indonesia earlier in the month flagged there was less room for it to further ease interest rates and that it would work to support the rupiah.
The Mexican peso MXN= was last down 0.8%, struggling through a difficult week wherein it fell to multi-year lows after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said he would impose a 25%tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico.
Brazil's real BRL= fell to its lowest level since mid-May 2020, as investors await the release of a fiscal package with spending cuts this week.
Elsewhere in Asia, the Bank of Korea unexpectedly lowered benchmark interest rates for the second consecutive meeting as the economy stagnated and inflation slowed more than policymakers had anticipated.
The South Korean won KRW=KFTC was down 0.2%, while stocks .KS11 were flat.
Among other currencies, the Thai baht THB=TH rose 0.3%, while the Singapore dollar SGD= and Malaysian ringgit MYR= dropped 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively.
Equity markets in developing Asian nations were largely downbeat, with stocks in Manila .PSI dropping 1.2% to their lowest in two weeks. The peso PHP= was soft and trading 0.1% up against the dollar.
Analysts have been warning about the country's rising trade deficit since April, citing diverging exports and domestic demand, an issue that has turned foreign investors away from one of the fastest growing economies in Southeast Asia.
Philippines equity markets have gained a meagre 2.9% so far this year, compared with 10.2% and 14.7% gains in peers Malaysia and Singapore.
Benchmark stock indexes in Indonesia .JKSE, Taiwan .TWII and Malaysia .KLSE fell between 0.1% and 0.4%.
HIGHLIGHTS:
** Thai factory output down 0.91% y/y in October, seen rising in 2025
** Philippine police files formal complaint against Vice President Duterte
Asian currencies and stocks as of 0423 GMT | ||||||
COUNTRY | FX RIC | FX DAILY % | FX YTD % | INDEX | STOCKS DAILY % | STOCKS YTD % |
Japan | JPY= | -0.32 | -6.94 | .N225 | 0.72 | 15.38 |
China | CNY=CFXS | +0.00 | -2.06 | .SSEC | -0.30 | 10.92 |
India | INR=IN | +0.00 | -1.47 | .NSEI | -0.02 | 11.68 |
Indonesia | IDR= | +0.44 | -2.90 | .JKSE | -0.41 | -0.78 |
Malaysia | MYR= | -0.05 | +3.33 | .KLSE | -0.08 | 10.19 |
Philippines | PHP= | +0.13 | -5.50 | .PSI | -1.03 | 2.85 |
S.Korea | KRW=KFTC | -0.21 | -7.72 | .KS11 | 0.01 | -5.72 |
Singapore | SGD= | -0.17 | -1.74 | .STI | 0.18 | 14.65 |
Taiwan | TWD=TP | +0.00 | -5.53 | .TWII | -0.43 | 24.02 |
Thailand | THB=TH | +0.27 | -0.68 | .SETI | -0.24 | 0.78 |
Reporting by Adwitiya Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill
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