Asian FX subdued after BOJ stands pat, Thai baht leads losses

Emerging Asian currencies came under pressure on Wednesday, with Thailand's baht emerging as the top loser after the central bank of Japan, the world's third-largest economy, held fast to its ultra-low interest rates.

The Thai baht USDTHB weakened as much as 0.6% during the session, while the Malaysian ringgit USDMYR dropped 0.3%, posting losses for a second straight session.

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) made no changes to its ultra-low interest rates at the end of its two-day meeting, ending days of market speculation that the central bank might phase out its massive stimulus programme in the wake of rising inflationary pressures.

Following the news from the BOJ, the U.S. dollar surged nearly 2% against the yen, its biggest one-day percentage jump since June 17, putting further pressure on emerging Asian currencies.

Christopher Wong, a currency strategist at OCBC, said yen weakness after the BOJ decision could weigh on Asian currencies in the short term.

"Expectations are still for the BOJ to normalise policy by way of stepping away from the yield curve control regime or exit the Negative Interest Rate Policy as inflationary pressure is turning more broad-based and seen to head higher," he said.

"Near term, the yen's weakness could spill over to other Asian currencies, in particular the South Korean won."

The Chinese yuan USDCNY edged 0.2% lower and the South Korean won USDKRW fell 0.5%, while the Philippine peso USDPHP emerged as the region's only outlier, gaining 0.2%.

The Singapore dollar USDSGD slipped 0.3%, tracking its worst day in nearly two weeks.

"The medium-term outlook for the Singapore dollar is centred around further potential tightening from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and any further developments that might arise from China's reopening," analysts at Maybank said.

The city-state said international arrivals last year exceeded forecasts and it expected a full recovery in tourism by next year to pre-pandemic levels, when China was the largest contributor of tourists.

Equities in emerging Asia were mixed, with shares in Seoul KOSPI sliding about 0.8% as investors booked profits ahead of major corporate results.

Stocks in Singapore STI were up 0.4% and Philippine PPSEI shares added 0.3%, while shares in Jakarta COMPOSITE fell 0.6%. Stocks in Shanghai 000001 were unchanged.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Indonesia approves $3.35 bln revised development plan for Eni's Merakes fields

** FOREX-Yen sinks after BOJ sticks to ultra-easy policy

** China's property sector shrinks 5.1% in 2022 - NBS