Indonesia's benchmark index snapped a four-day rising streak on Friday amid selling in recently rallying large caps, while Thai shares eked out more gains to a near 15-month high as investors built positions in tourism-related stocks and retailers. Jakarta's Composite Index edged down 0.1 percent, slightly trimming its weekly gain to 1 percent, after active selling in shares of Telkom Indonesia and Bank Mandiri , which led among gainers early in the week.
"Today's correction is expected, since JCI has risen recently in response to investor expectations for a peaceful and successful presidential election," said John Teja, director of broker Ciptadana Securities. The index earlier rose to a near record high of 5,223.97 amid a rise in the rupiah, a day after the country's highest court gave Joko Widodo the green light to lead Southeast Asia's largest economy from its worst slowdown since the global financial crisis.
Uncertainties over president-elect Widodo's policy, including fuel price hike expectation, would keep the market volatile in the near term, brokers said. Thai SET index rose for a fourth straight day, taking its gain on the week to 0.7 percent. It closed at 1,556.97, the highest since May 2013. Shares of Airports of Thailand jumped 3.2 percent and Central Pattana surged 4.9 percent, reflecting optimism around the domestic political stability after Thailand named a newly-nominated prime minister. Others in Southeast Asia had a positive week, with stocks in Singapore and Malaysia posting modest gains, while the Philippines climbed 1.8 percent and Vietnam notched up 2.6 percent.
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