Asian currencies post weekly fall on election concerns

Indonesia's rupiah led a second weekly decline in Asian currencies, spurred by concern slowing economic growth in China will damp demand for exports from the rest of the region.

A gauge of Chinese manufacturing showed this week that factory output probably contracted for a fourth month in April, while the International Monetary Fund predicts the nation's expansion will slow to 7.5 per cent in 2014 from 7.7 per cent last year. Indonesia, Thailand and India are all facing national elections. In Indonesia, early results from a parliamentary vote this month showed no clear majority, increasing uncertainty on the outcome of the July presidential race.

"We've had some negative China headlines coming out," said Vishnu Varathan, a senior economist in Singapore at Mizuho Bank. "Asian currencies are struggling to hold on to the gains for the year. Some of the initial optimism about politics in the region has given way to concerns."

The Bloomberg-JPMorgan Asia Dollar Index, which tracks the region's 10 most-active currencies excluding the yen, dropped 0.4 per cent from April 18 to 115.07. The rupiah slid 1.3 per cent to 11,565 per dollar in its biggest five-day decline since December, while the Indian rupee lost 0.6 per cent to 60.6250.

A preliminary reading for the Purchasing Managers' Index for Chinese manufacturing was at 48.3 in April, up from a final 48 in March, HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics reported this week. The figure, which was below the dividing line of 50 between expansion and contraction, matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of economists.

Elections
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the party of presidential frontrunner Joko Widodo who is popularly known as Jokowi, said April 10 it is open to a coalition with nationalist groups after unofficial parliamentary-election results indicated it lacks sufficient support to nominate a leader on its own.

"The rupiah is on track to weaken," said Saktiandi Supaat, head of foreign-exchange research at Malayan Banking Bhd. in Singapore. "The market wants to see who Jokowi will partner with and their stance on the economy."

India's rupee headed for a fourth weekly drop, its longest losing streak since November, on concern national elections will fail to deliver a clear winner when votes are counted May 16. Most polls show Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party winning the most seats in the election while falling short of a majority, an outcome that will probably end the 10-year rule of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Congress party.

Overseas investors withdrew a net $1.5 billion from Indian corporate and government bonds this month through April 23, the biggest outflow since October, exchange data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Elsewhere in Asia this week, the Malaysian ringgit fell 0.9 per cent to 3.2698 per dollar, the Thai baht lost 0.3 per cent to 32.262 and the Philippine peso dropped 0.5 per cent to 44.645. Taiwan's currency declined 0.3 per cent to NT$30.32, South Korea's won slipped 0.4 per cent to 1,041.38, while the Vietnamese dong was steady at 21,100.