* S. Korean won gains over 2%
* Thai baht set for best day in over 9 months
* Investors buy back into Indonesian bonds
(Adds text, updates prices)
By Shriya Ramakrishnan
March 27 (Reuters) - Most emerging Asian currencies
strengthened on Friday and were set for weekly gains as a series
of hefty global stimulus measures against the coronavirus eased
a dollar funding crunch.
Global incentives to arrest virus-driven economic losses
revived demand for riskier assets like Asian currencies,
breaking a two-week rally in the greenback and setting it on
course for the biggest weekly fall in more than a decade. USD/
China's dismal industrial data and a record surge in U.S.
weekly jobless claims bolstered hopes of more support measures
from the world's two largest economies, though a steady rise in
global virus infections tempered risk sentiment. "The gains in equities and Asian currencies this week do not
truly reflect market confidence that the coronavirus outbreak
has peaked and that the economic turmoil is over, despite the
promise of more economic rescue packages in the pipeline," Han
Tan, a market analyst at FXTM said.
"The risk that the rebound in stock markets may prove to be
a false dawn, one fuelled by volatility rather than
fundamentals, warrants a cautious stance by investors."
Leading gains in the region, the South Korean won KRW=KFTC
advanced as much as 2.2% to 1,206 per dollar, its strongest
level in more than two weeks.
The Thai baht THB=TH gained 0.9%, the best intraday
performance since June 20, 2019.
Thailand's finance minister said that the government has
enough funds to alleviate the impact of the outbreak, and a plan
to preserve jobs is also in the works. Malaysia's ringgit MYR= strengthened 1.3% before an
announcement for a second stimulus package.
The Indian rupee INR=IN surged up to 1%, a day after the
government announced a $22.6 billion relief package to help the
poor cope with disruptions due to a lockdown. India's central bank also slashed interest rates by 75 basis
points on Friday. RUPIAH
The Indonesian rupiah IDR=ID rose 1.4% on resurgent demand
for local bonds
8%.
The central bank governor on Thursday said there were no
plan for capital control measures to stem outflows, saying its
foreign exchange reserve is more than enough to prop up the
currency. The rupiah is the worst hit currency in the region, losing
about 13.5% so far this year.
CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR
Change on the day at
0554 GMT
Currency Latest bid Previous Pct
day Move
Japan yen 108.380 109.58 +1.11
Sing dlr 1.425 1.4310 +0.39
Taiwan dlr 30.182 30.306 +0.41
Korean won 1206.500 1232.8 +2.18
Baht 32.400 32.68 +0.86
Peso 50.800 50.7 -0.20
Rupiah 16050.000 16275 +1.40
Rupee 74.500 75.15 +0.87
Ringgit 4.275 4.33 +1.29
Yuan 7.075 7.0700 -0.07
Change so far in 2020
Currency Latest bid End 2019 Pct
Move
Japan yen 108.380 108.61 +0.21
Sing dlr 1.425 1.3444 -5.68
Taiwan dlr 30.182 30.106 -0.25
Korean won 1206.500 1156.40 -4.15
Baht 32.400 29.91 -7.69
Peso 50.800 50.65 -0.30
Rupiah 16050.000 13880 -13.52
Rupee 74.500 71.38 -4.19
Ringgit 4.275 4.0890 -4.35
Yuan 7.075 6.9632 -1.58