Indonesia Stocks Pare Losses After Market Suspension

Shares in Indonesia declined by 321 points, representing a 3.9% decrease, settling at 8,008 on Thursday afternoon. This came after an initial plunge of 8.0%, which led to a temporary 30-minute suspension of trading. The downturn was sparked by a downgrade from Goldman Sachs, which projected potential outflows of USD 2.2 billion, and was further fueled by MSCI's concerns regarding transparency. MSCI also warned that Jakarta risks being downgraded to frontier market status if reforms stall. In response, a high-ranking government official called on the stock exchange to enhance transparency measures. Despite these efforts, market sentiment remains tenuous as the country grapples with sustained foreign capital withdrawals, a weakening rupiah, an expanding fiscal deficit, and uncertainties surrounding the autonomy of the central bank. However, there was a slight improvement in risk appetite following a rise in futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, coupled with the Federal Reserve's decision to maintain interest rates and Chair Powell's observation that the economic outlook is "clearly improving." While losses persisted across some sectors, their intensity decreased. Notably, shares of Aneka Tambang declined by 7.2%, Bank Negara dropped by 3.2%, and Telkom Indonesia fell by 2.0%. Conversely, Bank Rakyat Indonesia saw a modest gain of 0.8%, and Petrindo Jaya Kreasi surged by 8.7%.