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Journalism of Courage
HONG KONG, JAN 6: Asian bourses plummeted today as regional currencies were sold down to historic new lows, deepening the gloom over regional financial markets. Hong Kong shares fell 1.6 per cent, Tokyo 0.4 per cent, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur 3.8 per cent, Jakarta 1.9 per cent, Manila 2.8 per cent, Taipei 0.8 per cent and Shanghai 3.6 per cent.
Markets were hit by jitters as the Indonesia rupiah, the Thai baht, the Malaysian ringgit and the Philippine peso maintained their free fall against the US dollar, seen as a haven from the regional crisis of confidence.
The currency selldown in early trade was triggered by renewed fears over Indonesian president Suharto’s health and riots in Indonesia that compounded already bearish sentiment in the region, dealers and analysts said.
Bangkok’s bid to review the terms of its IMF package was also blamed.The Indonesian rupiah fell to a new low of 7,700 to the dollar before recovering to close at 7,200 in Singapore trading, down from 6,650 yesterday. The Thai baht offshore fell to a historic low of 54.00 from its previous close of 49.92, and ended today at 52.30.
In Hong Kong, share prices dipped on an increase in interbank interest rates, fixed higher amid the renewed weakness in regional currencies to ward off any pressure on the local dollar, dealers said. The key Hang Seng index shed 168.03 points to close at 10,135.51, after dropping 3.5 percent in Monday’s trading.
Japanese share prices closed 0.4 per cent lower, pressured by lingering concerns over economic prospects and the yen’s decline in foreign exchange trading, brokers said. The Nikkei stock average of 225 selected issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 60.44 points to end at 14,896.40. The broader Topix index of all first-section issues lost 5.98 points to 1,160.65. Sentiments deteriorated on continued selling particularly in bank shares.
