The Thai baht hit a four-month low against the dollar on Monday and the Indonesian rupiah and Philippine peso wavered as foreigners rotated out of last year's high-performing equity and bond markets.
Investors were expected to keep differentiating their investment targets in Asia, shunning countries that are perceived to be vulnerable to inflation and focusing on markets where higher prices are not as big a concern, analysts and dealers said.
Taiwan dollar rose to near a fresh 13-year high against the dollar, pushed up by exporters' demand, but dealers say the central bank was seen intervening to check its strength and defend the 29.00 per dollar level. Earlier, the US dollar/Taiwan dollar slid to 29.040, just above 29.006, the lowest since October 1997 hit a few weeks ago on January 13. The won gained against the dollar on exporter demand and as investors reduced dollar positions.
The Philippine peso edged up but could be on the way to 45.00 per dollar by the end of the first quarter if dealers keep viewing the Philippines as a big inflation risk, Standard Chartered said.