Indonesia Stock Market Expected To Open Under Pressure

(RTTNews) - The Indonesia stock market on Tuesday ended the two-day slide in which it had dropped almost 80 points or 1.2 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just above the 7,160-point plateau although it's likely to hand back those gains on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets remains soft on concerns over an economic slowdown and the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are tipped to open in similar fashion. The JCI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the financial shares, resource stocks and cement companies.

For the day, the index gained 55.29 points or 0.78 percent to finish at 7,163.27. Among the actives, Bank Danamon Indonesia spiked 3.12 percent, while Bank CIMB Niaga collected 0.45 percent, Bank Central Asia retreated 1.25 percent, Bank Mandiri climbed 1.17 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia was up 0.70 percent, Indosat Ooredoo increased 0.69 percent, Indocement gathered 0.54 percent, Semen Indonesia strengthened 1.14 percent, United Tractors rose 1.02 percent, Astra International gained 0.72 percent, Energi Mega Persada plummeted 5.60 percent, Astra Agro Lestari improved 0.55 percent, Aneka Tambang rallied 2.27 percent, Vale Indonesia advanced 0.81 percent, Timah soared 2.36 percent, Bumi Resources surged 5.84 percent and Indofood Suskes and Bank Negara Indonesia were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street suggests mild consolidation again on Wednesday as the major averages shook off early support and finished slightly lower.

The Dow dropped 154.02 points or 0.47 percent to finish at 32,909.59, while the NASDAQ eased 0.27 points or 0.00 percent to close at 12,381.30 and the S&P 500 dipped 9.26 points or 0.22 percent to end at 4,128.73.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as traders were cautious ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the central bank's annual Jackson Hole economic symposium later this week, which may provide clues about the bank's outlook for the economy and interest rates.

In economic news, Markit Economics said its manufacturing PMI slowed in August, while the services and composite PMIs contracted at an accelerated rate. Also, the Commerce Department said new home sales slumped in July to their lowest reading since January 2016.

Crude oil prices rose sharply on Tuesday with traders weighing the prospects of OPEC and allies cutting output to support prices in the event of Iranian crude entering the market. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September jumped $3.38 or 3.7 percent at $93.74 a barrel.