(Corrects to 25.17% from 25.75% in third paragraph)
* Indian rupee firms to an more than one-month high
* Indonesian rupiah little changed after rate cut
By Shreya Mariam Job
Sept 20 (Reuters) - Asian currencies advanced on Friday
against the dollar with the Indian rupee gaining the most after
the country's finance minister announced deep cuts in corporate
taxes to revive flagging growth in the region's third-largest
economy.
The Indian rupee INR=IN rose as much as 0.9% to its
strongest since Aug. 9, while stocks in the country looked set
for their best day in more than a decade, after Nirmala
Sitharaman lowered the effective corporate tax rate and scrapped
the minimum alternative tax for domestic companies. She said the lower effective corporate tax rate of 25.17%,
versus 30% earlier, would be at par with that at Asian peers.
While markets "have reacted positively to FM's announcement,
there are concerns over deteriorating fiscal situation",
cautioned Rushabh Maru, currency and commodity analyst with
Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers.
The loss of revenue to the tune of 1.450 trillion rupees
($20.43 billion) through corporate tax cuts "will add to the
fiscal mess", Maru added.
In neighbouring China, Beijing marginally cut its new
one-year benchmark lending rate for the second month in a row on
Friday but left its five-year rate unchanged to shore up an
economy bruised by the Sino-U.S. trade war. The expected lift to money supply in the market as a result
of easing lending rules kept the yuan CNY=CFXS mostly subdued.
The cut in lending rates along with resumption of U.S. and
Chinese trade negotiations buoyed investor sentiment and
underpinned Asian units. The Malaysian ringgit MYR= and the Korean won KRW=KFTC
strengthened 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively, while the Philippine
peso PHP= firmed 0.4%. The Philippine central bank is set to
announce its policy interest rate next week.
The Indonesian rupiah IDR=ID remained little changed.
Bank Indonesia on Thursday cut interest rates and relaxed
lending rules to stimulate growth in Southeast Asia's biggest
economy. The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against
the dollar at 0603 GMT.
CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR
Change on the day at 0603 GMT
Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move
Japan yen 107.860 108 +0.13
Sing dlr 1.374 1.3783 +0.28
Taiwan dlr 30.958 31.006 +0.16
Korean won 1189.300 1193.6 +0.36
Baht 30.470 30.53 +0.20
Peso 52.040 52.27 +0.44
Rupiah 14050.000 14055 +0.04
Rupee 70.878 71.32 +0.62
Ringgit 4.176 4.19 +0.34
Yuan 7.085 7.0970 +0.17
Change so far in 2019
Currency Latest bid End 2018 Pct Move
Japan yen 107.860 109.56 +1.58
Sing dlr 1.374 1.3627 -0.85
Taiwan dlr 30.958 30.733 -0.73
Korean won 1189.300 1115.70 -6.19
Baht 30.470 32.55 +6.83
Peso 52.040 52.47 +0.83
Rupiah 14050.000 14375 +2.31
Rupee 70.878 69.77 -1.56
Ringgit 4.176 4.1300 -1.10
Yuan 7.085 6.8730 -2.99
($1 = 70.97 Indian rupees)