Indonesia Bourse May See Continued Buying

(RTTNews) - The Indonesia stock market has moved higher in three straight sessions, collecting more than 150 points or 2.1 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just beneath the 6,960-point plateau and it's called to open higher again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic thanks to the improving outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were slightly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The JCI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, resource stocks and cement companies.

For the day, the index rallied 96.15 points or 1.40 percent to finish at 6,958.21.

Among the actives, Bank CIMB Niaga added 0.59 percent, while Bank Mandiri jumped 1.72 percent, Bank Danamon Indonesia climbed 1.12 percent, Bank Negara Indonesia soared 2.05 percent, Bank Central Asia collected 1.40 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia surged 3.45 percent, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison accelerated 1.88 percent, Semen Indonesia advanced 0.80 percent, Indofood Suskes increased 0.78 percent, United Tractors gained 0.65 percent, Astra International strengthened 1.32 percent, Energi Mega Persada dropped 0.90 percent, Aneka Tambang improved 1.23 percent, Vale Indonesia plummeted 4.81 percent, Timah spiked 1.54 percent and Bumi Resources, Perusahaan Gas Negara, Astra Agro Lestari and Indocement were changed.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild upside as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and stayed largely in the green although finished with limited gains.

The Dow jumped 163.51 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 34,991.21, while the NASDAQ rose 9.45 points or 0.07 percent to close at 14,103.84 and the S&P 500 perked 7.18 points or 0.16 percent to end at 4,502.88.

The continued strength on Wall Street came as the latest inflation data added to optimism about the outlook for interest rates - especially after the Labor Department reported an unexpected decrease in U.S. producer prices in October.

Following Tuesday's tamer than expected consumer price inflation data, the latest report reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve is done raising interest rates.

In economic news, the Commerce Department said retail sales in the U.S. edged slightly lower in October.

Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday after data showed a sharp increase in U.S. crude stockpiles and a big jump in crude production. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December lost $1.60 or 2 percent at $76.66 a barrel, falling for the first time in five sessions.