BANGKOK: Most Southeast Asian stock markets ended flat to weaker on Thursday after a bout of late selling, with Indonesian shares erasing early gains after the central bank maintained key interest rates. Philippine stocks closed 0.2 percent lower after expected rate hikes.
Jakarta's composite index closed down 0.2 percent,
with interest rate sensitive stocks such as Bank Rakyat
Indonesia down 0.2 percent after a 1.2 percent rise in
early trade.
Indonesia's central bank held its key interest rate steady
on Thursday, as expected, but questions loom about how much the
now-contained inflation rate might increase if the new president
raises fuel prices to cut costly subsidies.
The Philippine main index eased 0.2 percent, weighed
down by a 1.2 percent drop in shares of Philippine Long Distance
Telephone, the country's biggest firm by market value.
The Philippine central bank raised both its policy rate and
the rate on its special deposit accounts by 25 basis points on
Thursday, its most aggressive move against persistent inflation
amid buoyant economic growth.
Nine of 11 economists polled by Reuters had expected the
central bank to tighten monetary conditions on Thursday.
Brokers in Bangkok said investors awaited U.S. data,
including the U.S. Federal Reserve's statement middle of next
week, to guage the direction of foreign fund flows.
Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand posted net
foreign outflows worth 599.8 billion rupiah ($50.74 million),
296 million peso ($6.74 million) and 175 million baht ($5.44
million), respectively, Thomson Reuters and stock exchange data
showed.
Among bright spots, shares of True Corporation Pcl
, 18-percent owned by China Mobile Ltd,
finished up 4.2 percent, after the telecoms operator said it
expected to make a net profit in the fourth quarter of this year
after years of losses.
SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS
Change on day
Market Current Prev Close Pct Move
Singapore 3347.28 3338.63 +0.26
Kuala Lumpur 1866.11 1870.85 -0.25
Bangkok 1580.87 1582.13 -0.08
Jakarta 5133.03 5142.99 -0.19
Manila 7202.06 7212.78 -0.15
Ho Chi Minh 628.99 628.80 +0.03
Change on year
Market Current End 2013 Pct Move
Singapore 3347.28 3167.43 +5.68
Kuala Lumpur 1866.11 1866.96 -0.05
Bangkok 1580.87 1298.71 +21.73
Jakarta 5133.03 4274.18 +20.09
Manila 7202.06 5889.83 +22.28
Ho Chi Minh 628.99 504.63 +24.64
(1 US dollar = 11,820.0000 rupiah)
(1 US dollar = 43.9200 Philippine peso)
(1 US dollar = 32.1800 Thai baht)
- Reuters
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