Indonesia Stock Market May Open In The Red

(RTTNews) - The Indonesia stock market rebounded on Tuesday, one session after snapping the three-day winning streak in which it had gained more than 50 points or 0.8 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just above the 6,980-point plateau although it may hand back those gains on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is one of caution ahead of the Federal Reserve's rate decision and statement later today. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The JCI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the financial shares and mixed performances from the cement and resource stocks.

For the day, the index improved 44.24 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 6,980.32.

Among the actives, Bank Mandiri jumped 1.69 percent, while Bank Negara Indonesia strengthened 1.07 percent, Bank Central Asia collected 0.83 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia gathered 0.94 percent, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison added 0.51 percent, Indocement advanced 0.98 percent, Semen Indonesia shed 0.36 percent, Indofood Suskes climbed 1.14 percent, United Tractors gained 0.80 percent, Astra International improved 0.79 percent, Energi Mega Persada increased 0.72 percent, Astra Agro Lestari retreated 1.33 percent, Aneka Tambang fell 0.27 percent, Vale Indonesia slumped 2.54 percent, Timah surged 3.85 percent, Bumi Resources rallied 1.46 percent and Bank Danamon Indonesia and Bank CIMB Niaga were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened flat, tumbled early and then saw a late recovery to finish with only modest losses.

The Dow shed 106.57 points or 0.31 percent to finish at 34,517.73, while the NASDAQ lost 32.05 points or 0.23 percent to close at 13,678.19 and the S&P 500 fell 9.58 points or 0.22 percent to end at 4,443.95.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders remained on edge ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later today.

While the Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, traders will pay close attention to the accompanying statement and the central bank's projections for clues about the outlook for rates.

Negative sentiment may also have been generated by a Commerce Department report showing a sharp pullback in U.S. housing starts in August. Also, the Commerce Department said building permits surged more than expected in August.

Crude oil futures settled lower on Tuesday after posting gains in the three previous sessions to touch a 10-month high. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended lower by $0.28 or 0.3 percent at $91.20 a barrel.