Won, peso decline

The South Korean won and the Philippines peso slid against the dollar on Monday, weighed down by higher oil prices and traders' caution about further intervention by some central banks to slow any gains in their currencies. Central banks of Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore were spotted buying dollars, dealers said. But the purchases may have been aimed at slowing appreciation of their currencies, rather than reversing them, given inflationary pressures across much of the region, analysts said.
The won slid against the dollar as investors covered dollar-short positions and importers' dollar demand for settlements around mid-1,110 levels per dollar. The local currency found some support ahead of the central bank's rate decision on Thursday and as exporters bought it for settlements. The Philippines peso slid as investors covered dollar-short positions amid higher oil prices and market remained biddish for the greenback, dealers say.