* Indonesia 10-year bond yields drop, rupiah at 6-mth high
* Rupiah may continue to outperform - analyst
* Thai shares fall 1% on virus curbs threat
By Anushka Trivedi
Jan 4 (Reuters) - Emerging Asia's currencies began the new
year on the front foot as investors bet that a vaccine-led
recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic would keep the dollar
subdued, with the Indonesian rupiah climbing to a more than
six-month high.
The greenback .DXY continued to retreat after posting its
largest annual loss since 2017 last year, buoying the Taiwanese
dollar TWD=TP 1.5%, while the Malaysian ringgit MYR=MY and
the South Korean won KRW=KFTC advanced 0.6% and 0.5%,
respectively.
The Chinese yuan CNY=CFXS jumped 0.9% and blew past the
crucial 6.5 per dollar level, anchoring gains in regional
currencies. CNY/
"The weaker U.S. dollar is set to be a prolonged theme in
2021," said Han Tan, market analyst at FXTM, adding that
emerging-market currencies would stay supported in that case,
with optimism over vaccine rollouts adding to gains.
"Any ramp up in expectations for more incoming U.S. fiscal
stimulus or other boosts to inflationary pressures should
translate into more downward pressure on the dollar," he said.
Meanwhile, the rupiah IDR= broke the 14,000 per dollar
mark on Monday, trading 1.3% higher at about 13,860, whereas
Indonesia's 10-year benchmark yields ID10YT=RR fell 16.1 basis
points at 5.937%. Yields fall when prices rise.
After concerns over the central bank's autonomy in Jakarta,
positive vaccine developments toward the end of 2020 helped the
rupiah recoup most of its losses, with investors continuing to
flock to Indonesia's high-yielding debt amid a weak dollar.
"The rupiah may continue its outperformance... the global
hunt for yields should drive more inflows into its bond markets
which would be a major supportive element for the Indonesian
currency," Tan added.
Most regional equities were stronger amid optimism in
markets, with South Korea .KS11 , Indonesia .JKSE and the
Philippines .PSI shares firming between 1% to 2.3%.
However, the Malaysian bourse .KLSE was weighed down by
the heavyweight glove makers that benefited during the early
months of the pandemic.
Thai shares .SETI dropped 1% as the government mulled more
restrictions amid a second wave of coronavirus infections and
after it reported its first known case of a more contagious
variant of the virus on Sunday. HIGHLIGHTS
** The Singapore dollar SGD= notches a near 3-year high
after Q4 GDP contracts slightly less than expected
** Top losers on Malaysia Index .KLSE are glove makers
Hartalega Holdings Bhd HTHB.KL down 13.7%, Top Glove Corp
TPGC.KL down 10.5% & Supermax Corp SUPM.KL down 6.7%
** Top gainers on the Jakarta stock index .JKSE : Trust
Finance Indonesia Tbk PT TRUS.JK up 18.4% and Energi Mega
Persada Tbk PT ENRG.JK up 13.2%
Asia stock indexes and currencies at
0510 GMT
COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY % FX YTD % INDEX STOCKS DAILY % STOCKS YTD %
Japan JPY= +0.17 +0.21 .N225 -0.67 -0.67
China CNY=CFXS +0.89 +0.89 .SSEC 0.91 0.91
India INR=IN +0.24 +0.16 .NSEI 0.48 0.74
Indonesia IDR= +1.26 +1.26 .JKSE 1.00 1.00
Malaysia MYR= +0.63 +0.63 .KLSE -1.63 -1.63
Philippines PHP= +0.03 +0.03 .PSI 0.81 0.81
S.Korea KRW=KFTC +0.48 +0.47 .KS11 2.27 2.27
Singapore SGD= +0.34 +0.27 .STI 0.18 0.18
Taiwan TWD=TP +1.49 +1.40 .TWII 1.35 1.35
Thailand THB=TH +0.13 +0.20 .SETI -0.53 -0.53