South Korea’s won and the Philippine peso were among Asian currencies to advance on Friday after the US government stepped up efforts to stem losses in the credit markets, helping revive demand for regional stocks.
Taiwan’s dollar and the Indonesian rupiah also rose as Asian shares climbed from a three-year low following the biggest rally in US equities in six years on Thursday. US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke sought legislation to remove troubled assets from banks and alleviate a credit squeeze.
“It’s predominantly a confidence issue and what we are seeing is probably a temporary reprieve in the market,” said Wan Murezani Mohamad, a senior analyst at Malaysian Rating Corp in Kuala Lumpur. “There may be value in Asian stocks and currencies” after the recent sell-off, he said.
The won rose 1.2 percent to 1,139.70 against the US dollar as of the 3pm close in Seoul on Friday, according to Seoul Money Brokerage Services Ltd. The won fell 2.7 percent on the week.
The Philippine peso gained 0.9 percent to 46.552 in Manila, Tullett Prebon PLC said. The peso gained 0.7 percent from a week ago.
The won’s advance reduced this year’s loss to 18 percent, the worst among the 10 most-active Asian currencies. The currency will trade between 1,100 and 1,160 in the coming week, according to 10 strategists and traders surveyed by Bloomberg.
Central banks in Japan and Australia pumped US$113 billion into money markets this week, pushing down borrowing costs to revive confidence among banks.
The Philippine peso snapped a seven-week slide as central banks in the world’s biggest economies made US$180 billion available to the global financial system.
India’s rupee climbed from more than a two-year low on speculation stock gains will help stem capital outflows.
Indonesia’s rupiah rose for a fourth day on Friday as Deputy Governor Hartadi Sarwono said Sept. 17 that Bank Indonesia has been intervening to boost the currency.
The rupiah traded at 9,375 in Jakarta, from 9,400 on Thursday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The currency rose 0.6 percent this week.
Elsewhere in Asia, the New Taiwan dollar gained 0.2 percent to NTS32.158 against the US currency on Friday. The Singapore dollar fell 0.5 percent to S$1.4362, Malaysia’s ringgit rose 0.5 percent to 3.4527, the Thai baht declined 0.1 percent to 34.17 and Vietnam’s dong dropped 0.5 percent to 16,715.
The US dollar weakened against the euro on Friday after the US authorities pledged to forge a massive financial rescue plan that raised concerns about its cost.
The euro rose to US$1.4476 around 9pm GMT from US$1.4348 late on Thursday in New York.
But the dollar gained ground against the yen, reaching ¥107.38 after ¥105.37 on Thursday.
The US currency earlier in the day jumped on news the US government was hammering out a plan to purchase some of the bad debt that has crippled banks and helped fuel a global financial crisis.
“Forex market conditions have seen a short-term improvement, as a sigh of relief across global financial markets eases tensions and returns much-needed liquidity to traded markets,” said David Rodriguez, analyst at Forex Capital Markets.
The US initiative also ignited major gains in stock markets around the world.
But the dollar’s trajectory later reversed as investors further weighed the implications of the US action, analysts said.
Analysts said the dollar’s appeal hinged on how investors react to such persistent concerns over the health of the US economy and the soundness of the financial sector, and the cost of what it will take to fix the problems.
In late New York trading, the dollar stood at 1.1043 Swiss francs, compared with SF1.1047 late on Thursday. The pound was at US$1.8305, up from US$1.8185.
STILL COMMITTED: The US opposes any forced change to the ‘status quo’ in the Strait, but also does not seek conflict, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said US President Donald Trump’s administration released US$5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, including US$870 million in security exemptions for programs in Taiwan, a list of exemptions reviewed by Reuters showed. Trump ordered a 90-day pause on foreign aid shortly after taking office on Jan. 20, halting funding for everything from programs that fight starvation and deadly diseases to providing shelters for millions of displaced people across the globe. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has said that all foreign assistance must align with Trump’s “America First” priorities, issued waivers late last month on military aid to Israel and Egypt, the
France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and accompanying warships were in the Philippines yesterday after holding combat drills with Philippine forces in the disputed South China Sea in a show of firepower that would likely antagonize China. The Charles de Gaulle on Friday docked at Subic Bay, a former US naval base northwest of Manila, for a break after more than two months of deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. The French carrier engaged with security allies for contingency readiness and to promote regional security, including with Philippine forces, navy ships and fighter jets. They held anti-submarine warfare drills and aerial combat training on Friday in
COMBAT READINESS: The military is reviewing weaponry, personnel resources, and mobilization and recovery forces to adjust defense strategies, the defense minister said The military has released a photograph of Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) appearing to sit beside a US general during the annual Han Kuang military exercises on Friday last week in a historic first. In the photo, Koo, who was presiding over the drills with high-level officers, appears to be sitting next to US Marine Corps Major General Jay Bargeron, the director of strategic planning and policy of the US Indo-Pacific Command, although only Bargeron’s name tag is visible in the seat as “J5 Maj General.” It is the first time the military has released a photo of an active
CHANGE OF MIND: The Chinese crew at first showed a willingness to cooperate, but later regretted that when the ship arrived at the port and refused to enter Togolese Republic-registered Chinese freighter Hong Tai (宏泰號) and its crew have been detained on suspicion of deliberately damaging a submarine cable connecting Taiwan proper and Penghu County, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement yesterday. The case would be subject to a “national security-level investigation” by the Tainan District Prosecutors’ Office, it added. The administration said that it had been monitoring the ship since 7:10pm on Saturday when it appeared to be loitering in waters about 6 nautical miles (11km) northwest of Tainan’s Chiang Chun Fishing Port, adding that the ship’s location was about 0.5 nautical miles north of the No.
RSS