The South Korean won jumped on Tuesday amid suspected central bank efforts to prop up the ailing currency, leading a rebound among Asian currencies ahead of an expected Fed interest rate cut later in the day. The South Korean won rose as far as 1,008.9 per dollar, up almost 2 percent from late Asian trade on Monday.
As dealers said the foreign exchange authorities may have sold some $1 billion during the morning session to support the won. Earlier, Deputy Finance Minister Shin Je-yoon warned against the won's sharp falls versus the dollar and vowed to take measures to smooth its volatility.
The currency tumbled just over 3 percent in the previous session, as investors sold Asian currencies on fears of the spreading credit crisis after news of the sale of investment bank Bear Stearns and the Fed's emergency discount-rate cut. "We still see negative risks for the won," said David Mann, currency strategist at Standard Chartered Bank.
"The US credit crisis is playing a role in the funding problems in Korea," he said, expecting the won to fall further to 1,032 in the near term. The Indonesian rupiah briefly hit 9,220 per dollar, up nearly 0.9 percent from late Asian trade on Monday.
The Singapore dollar rose as far as 1.3785 per US dollar, up nearly half of a percent from late Asian trade on Monday, as investors positioned for a hefty interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve later in the day. "The market expects a rate cut between 0.75 and 1 percentage point, and it's most likely they have to give in to market demand," said a trader in Singapore.
The Fed on Sunday announced emergency measures to stem a global credit crisis, including cutting its discount rate to 3.25 percent from 3.5 percent and approving special financing to help J.P. Morgan acquire the beleaguered Bear Stearns. The Fed is widely expected to slash its benchmark interest rate, currently at 3 percent, at its policy meeting on Tuesday.
The move would further widen the interest rate differentials between the United States and Asian countries, which could in turn help spur capital inflows into the region, analysts say. Policy interest rates in emerging Asian countries range from 3.25 percent in Thailand to 8 percent in Indonesia.
The Thai baht gained 0.8 percent to 31.13 per dollar, its highest since August 1997, as exporters and investors sold the dollar in anticipation of the Fed's rate cut.
"If FOMC (Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee) cuts fed funds rate tonight by 100 basis points and BOT does not cut is interest rate, it should spur capital inflows by widening the interest differential," said a Bangkok-based trader.
Some traders cited suspected dollar-buying intervention by the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to slow the rise in the baht, the top performer in emerging Asia that has gained 8 percent this year.
The won, the worst performer, has lost 7.7 percent this year. Elsewhere, the Chinese yuan fell to 7.0871 per dollar, down slightly from its post-revaluation high of 7.0815 hit on Monday. But analysts believe the yuan is on track to gain about 10 percent in the whole of 2008 as Beijing tries to tame inflation, which hit 8.7 percent, the highest pace in nearly 12 years.
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