Southeast Asian currencies logged weekly highs on Friday against a weak dollar after multi-billion dollar lifelines for troubled banks eased stress on the global financial system and shored up investor hopes that the Federal Reserve could ease its rate hike campaign.
The Philippine peso strengthened 0.5%, leading the gains among its peers, and was set to post its best week since Feb. 24. The Thai baht and Indonesia rupiah were on track to post their sharpest gains since Jan. 13.
The Malaysian ringgit followed suit by appreciating 0.5% and was poised for its best week since Jan. 27.
“The positive sentiment from the overnight news in the US has helped to calm market down a lot more, and that is what we are seeing reflected in the Asia FX.
Essentially the regional currencies are out performing the dollar,“ said Alvin Tan, head of Asia FX strategy at RBC Capital Markets.
“I’m generally quite heartened to see that the dollar-Asia pair have held pretty well through the turbulence of the past week,” he added.
The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, eased 0.3% after major US banks injected $30 billion in deposits into First Republic Bank.
Asian currencies mixed as Credit Suisse sparks global bank fears
That rescued a lender caught up in a widening crisis triggered by the collapse of two other mid-size US banks over the past week.
Across the region, stocks tracked Wall Street peers higher on Friday, but were on track for weekly losses given the recent market tensions.
Malaysian shares gained 1.4%, heading for the best day in more than three months, while stocks in Thailand advanced 0.4%, but faced the worst week in five months.
The Manila benchmark was set for its worst week in more than five months, while equities in Singapore added nearly 1%, snapping a streak of seven consecutive weekly losses.
Singapore joined its Southeast Asian peers in flagging that its banks held insignificant exposure to troubled Swiss bank Credit Suisse.
Elsewhere in the region, equities in Jakarta gained 1.2%.
Indonesia’s central bank said on Thursday it would continue to intervene in the currency market amid volatility linked to the closure of some US banks, after leaving interest rates unchanged for a second straight meeting.
Highlights
** Singapore, Indonesia to build renewable energy industry in Batam
** Thailand rushes to avert spill after accident on oil storage ship
** Philippines posts $837 mln budget surplus in January
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