TOKYO, January 22: Asia-Pacific stock markets dipped today, spooked by the free fall of the Indonesian rupiah which deepened regional economic gloom and worries over corporate health.Stock indices in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Sydney, Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul, Taipei, Shanghai and Auckland closed lower in sympathy with fresh weakness assailing regional currencies.
A dollar-buying spree by Indonesian corporates saw the rupiah hit a new record intra-day low of 16,500 to the US dollar, marking a 43.5 per cent gain for the greenback from its close on Wednesday of 11,500 to the US dollar.
The rupiah recovered as selling pressure on it eased with reported Central Bank intervention. The rupiah ended its roller-coaster ride at 12,000 to the dollar.
But sentiment in Indonesian markets and elsewhere in Asia was still fragile amid worries over corporate debt repayments and a successor to long-reigning Indonesian president Suharto.
In Tokyo, share prices fell 1.7 per cent, hit by profit
taking after a six-day rising streak and late selling on concerns over the fallout from the Asian crisis, brokers said.
The key Nikkei stock average of 225 selected issues on the Tokyo stock exchange fell 278.73 points to end at 16,405.69. Hong Kong shares fell 3.9 per cent as Indonesia's economic mess worsened.. The key Hang Seng index fell 363.07 points to 8,883.73.
Singapore's blue-chip stock index dropped 3.2 percent on worries over a persistent plunge in the Indonesian rupiah which took its toll on other regional currencies as well. The Straits Times Industrials index of the stock exchange of Singapore fell 41.91 points to end at 1269.49.
Malaysia's key stock index closed 2.6 percent lower, weighed down by falls in regional bourses and currencies, but ended its lows on light local buying.
The Australian stock exchange's main indicator, the all ordinaries index, fell 23.4 points to 2,599.4.
Thai share prices closed 2.8 percent lower in active trading and Jakarta's benchmark stock index
closed 4.8 percent lower. The composite index at the Jakarta stock exchange closed 22.474 points lower to 443.529.
BSE hit too
MUMBAI: EQUITIES lost further ground on Thursday as panic-stricken speculators squared up positions in view of the fresh fall in the Asian markets. A lacklustre trading session saw the 30-share BSE Sensitive Index breach the 3,400-mark to close at 3,380.30, losing 38.04 points over the previous close.
``Sentiment continues to be at a lower ebb, despite the rupee value firming up,'' commented Hiren Ved of Prime Securities. ``Investors are not in a position to take a clear view on the market,'' he explained.
The indecisive mood of the market hit the turnover as well, with the BSE reporting a 9 per cent fall in turnover at Rs 841.47 crore.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
