Thai baht holds steady, stocks jump after surprise rate cut
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Philippines delivers 25-bp rate cut, as expected
Bank Indonesia holds rates steady, as expected
Tech stocks drag S.Korea, Taiwan markets lower
By Roushni Nair
Oct 16 (Reuters) -Thailand's baht held largely steady and stocks jumped after the Bank of Thailand (BOT) surprisingly cut its key interest rate on Wednesday, while the Philippine central bank lowered rates and Bank Indonesia maintained a status quo as expected.
The baht THB=TH was last up 0.1%, while stocks .SETI in Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy rose as much as 1.6% to 1,488.59 points, its highest since September 2023.
The BOT reduced the one-day repurchase rate THCBIR=ECI by 25 basis points to 2.25%. It had left the rate unchanged at a decade-high of 2.5% since September 2023.
Despite government support for the rate cut, including recent lobbying by Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajia for accelerated economic growth, the baht remains the second-best performing currency in Asia this year, surpassed only by the Malaysian ringgit, said Daniel Tan, a fund manager at Grasshopper Asset Management.
"The BOT's latest stance may have come because of the high level of household debt," Tan said.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas cut rates by 25 basis points and with inflation now below the 2%-4% target range, it is likely to continue its easing cycle that began in August, potentially implementing another reduction in December.
The Philippine peso PHP= was largely unchanged and stocks in Manila .PSI slipped by 0.3%.
The Indonesian central bank kept interest rates unchanged despite inflation falling to 1.84% last month, its lowest since 2021 and within the central bank's target range of 1.5% to 3.5%.
The Indonesian rupiah IDR= extended gains, advancing as much as 0.4% to 15,515 per U.S. dollar, while shares in Jakarta .JKSE traded flat.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar hovered near two-month peaks versus major peers, supported by expectations the Federal Reserve will proceed with modest rate cuts. USD/
Recent monetary policy decisions across Asia suggest a trend towards rate reductions, following the Fed's lead in September, said Jeff Ng, head of Asia Macro Strategy at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.
"This comes as inflation stays relatively within central bank targets, setting the stage for lower policy rates," he said.
As widely anticipated, the Monetary Authority of Singapore maintained its stance for the sixth consecutive time since April 2023 on Monday, while the Bank of Korea (BoK) reduced its policy rate by 25 basis points to 3.25% last week.
Stock markets in the region tracked a fall in U.S. semiconductor names after chip equipment maker ASML ASML.AS cut its annual sales forecast.
The tech-heavy stock indexes of Taiwan .TWII and South Korea .KS11 fell 0.9% and 1.21%, respectively, with industry giants Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co 2330.TW and Samsung Electronics 005930.KS spearheading the declines in their respective markets.
HIGHLIGHTS:
** Taiwan c.bank sold net $9.1 bln to stabilise currency in H1
** China c.bank drains cash from open market operations
Asian stocks and currencies at 0758 GMT | ||||||
COUNTRY | FX RIC | FX DAILY % | FX YTD % | INDEX | STOCKS DAILY % | STOCKS YTD % |
Japan | JPY= | -0.19 | -5.63 | .N225 | -1.83 | 17.70 |
China | CNY=CFXS | +0.02 | -0.28 | .SSEC | 0.05 | 7.66 |
India | INR=IN | -0.01 | -0.99 | .NSEI | -0.29 | 14.98 |
Indonesia | IDR= | +0.45 | -0.71 | .JKSE | 0.00 | 4.87 |
Malaysia | MYR= | +0.35 | +6.94 | .KLSE | -0.63 | 12.17 |
Philippines | PHP= | +0.16 | -4.06 | .PSI | -0.26 | 15.30 |
S.Korea | KRW=KFTC | +0.30 | -5.45 | .KS11 | -0.88 | -1.69 |
Singapore | SGD= | -0.01 | +0.76 | .STI | 0.11 | 11.08 |
Taiwan | TWD=TP | -0.05 | -4.54 | .TWII | -1.21 | 28.33 |
Thailand | THB=TH | +0.03 | +2.54 | .SETI | 1.53 | 5.06 |
Graphic: World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
Asian stock markets https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
Reporting by Roushni Nair, additional reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru and Ankur Banerjee in Singapore; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu
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