(RTTNews) – Ahead of Thursday’s Labor Day holiday, the Indonesia stock market had moved higher in four straight sessions, advancing almost 160 points or 2.5 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now rests just beneath the 6,770-point plateau and it’s tipped to open in the green again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with support expected from the oil and technology companies in particular. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are expected to follow that lead.
The JCI finished slightly higher again on Wednesday following gains from the cement companies and mixed performances from the financial shares and resource stocks.
For the day, the index rose 17.72 points or 0.26 percent to finish at 6,766.79 after trading between 6,725.97 and 6,791.25.
Among the actives, Bank CIMB Niaga skidded 1.13 percent, while Bank Mandiri slumped 1.01 percent, Bank Danamon Indonesia lost 0.82 percent, Bank Negara Indonesia advanced 0.97 percent, Bank Central Asia climbed 1.15 percent, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison plummeted 9.56 percent, Semen Indonesia jumped 1.95 percent, Indofood Sukses Makmur surged 6.67 percent, United Tractors perked 0.11 percent, Astra Agro Lestari retreated 1.24 percent, Aneka Tambang shed 0.46 percent, Vale Indonesia sank 0.80 percent, Timah rallied 2.15 percent, Bumi Resources dropped 0.93 percent and Astra International, Energi Mega Persada, Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Indocement were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher on Thursday and remained in the green throughout the session, although they came well off the day’s highs.
The Dow improved 83.60 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 40,752.96, while the NASDAQ rallied 264.40 points or 1.52 percent to close at 17,710.74 and the S&P 500 added 35.08 points or 0.63 percent to end at 5,604.14.
The early rally on Wall Street came in reaction to upbeat earnings news from software giant Microsoft (MSFT) and Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META), both of which exceeded expectations.
Buying interest waned as the day progressed, however, as traders digested some disappointing economic data, including a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for jobless benefits rose much more than expected last week.
Crude oil saw considerable volatility Thursday but moved sharply higher after President Donald Trump threatened to impose sanctions on any country that purchases Iranian oil. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery jumped $1.03 or 1.8 percent to $59.24 a barrel.
Closer to home, Indonesia will provide April numbers for consumer prices later today; in March, overall inflation was up 1.65 percent on month and 1.03 percent on year, while core CPI rose an annual 2.48 percent.
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