Most Asian currencies weaker

A strong dollar in the absence of progress of bailing out debt-ridden Greece weighed on most Asian currencies on Monday but Indonesia's rupiah rallied on verbal support from its central bank. The dollar index touched its highest since March 2, extending Friday's sharp gains as uncertainty over Greece and an interest rate hike by India kept investors cautious about riskier assets.
India's rupee recovered from a small early loss while its stock market lost ground after the central bank unexpectedly raised interest rates by 25 basis points late on Friday. The euro, which lost 1.9 percent against the dollar last week, traded just above three-week lows as the market waited for fresh news on Greece. Japanese domestic markets were closed for a national holiday, leaving yen trade thin.
RUPIAH The Indonesian rupiah rallied two-thirds of a percent to around 9,110 per dollar after touching an intra-day high of 9,090 earlier, fuelled by fund inflows and a central bank comment late on Friday on possible further strengthening of the currency.
"We expect the rupiah to probably hit 9,000 around early to mid-April when the central bank is expected to move in bidding for dollars," a Jakarta-based dealer said. "But this week the rupiah should consolidate as investors wait for auctions of about 5 trillion rupiah of 1-year to 28-year government bonds and on higher end-quarter corporate demand for dollars," he said. The rupiah has gained 1.8 percent in the past month and 3.3 percent so far this year. Dollar/rupiah was bid at 9,118 against 9,170 late on Friday.
BAHT The Thai baht fell a shade, tracking softer Asian peers to 32.32-33 per dollar but foreign capital inflows to Thai equities were seen limiting its slide. "The baht is seen in the 32.00-32.35 range today and 32.00-32.45 this week. The small 25-point Indian rate rise has no impact on the baht or the Thai rate outlook," a Bangkok-based trader said.
A second dealer said the baht would continue benefiting from capital inflows this week and help offset unsettled Thai politics after a big challenge of the government from opposition activists and supporters of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Saturday. Dollar/baht was bid at 32.32 against 32.30 late on Friday. The baht has gained 3.1 percent against the dollar this year.