Indonesia Stock Market May Run Out Of Steam On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The Indonesia stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, gathering almost 30 points or 0.4 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just beneath the 6,835-point plateau although the rally may stall of Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft, with losses among technology stocks likely to be mitigated by continued support from oil shares. The European markets were mixed and little changed and the U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to split the difference.

The JCI finished slightly higher on Tuesday gains from the energy companies, weakness from the resource stocks and a mixed picture from the financial sector.

For the day, the index perked 6.00 points or 0.09 percent to finish at 6,833.18.

Among the actives, Bank Danamon Indonesia rallied 2.44 percent, while Bank CIMB Niaga lost 0.38 percent, Bank Central Asia slipped 0.28 percent, Bank Mandiri retreated 1.19 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia collected 0.42 percent, Indocement shed 0.48 percent, Semen Indonesia gained 0.39 percent, Indofood Suskes soared 2.83 percent, United Tractors spiked 2.69 percent, Astra International added 0.42 percent, Energi Mega Persada skyrocketed 6.09 percent, Astra Agro Lestari fell 0.30 percent, Aneka Tambang tumbled 1.91 percent, Vale Indonesia sank 0.37 percent, Timah declined 1.46 percent and Bumi Resources, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison and Bank Negara Indonesia were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is negative as the major averages opened flat on Tuesday but quicky turned lower and finished with modest losses.

The Dow tumbled 198.77 points or 0.59 percent to finish at 33,402.38, while the NASDAQ sank 63.12 points or 0.52 percent to close at 12,126.33 and the S&P 500 shed 23.91 points or 0.58 percent to end at 4,100.60.

Profit taking contributed to the pullback on Wall Street, as traders cashed in on recent strength in the markets amid lingering concerns about the global economic outlook.

Negative sentiment was also generated by a Labor Department report showing job openings in the U.S. fell more than expected in February. Also, the Commerce Department said new orders for U.S. manufactured goods fell more than expected in February.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Tuesday, extending gains to a fourth straight session as the decision of the OPEC+ to cut crude production continued to support oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.29 or 0.4 percent at $80.71 a barrel.