Additional Support Anticipated For Indonesia Stock Market

The Indonesia stock market has moved higher in two straight sessions, advancing more than 150 points or 2.5 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just beneath the 6,080-point plateau and it’s looking at another solid start again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism for economic recovery and rising crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The JCI finished modestly higher on Thursday following mixed performances from the financial shares and the resource stocks.

For the day, the index added 29.23 points or 0.48 percent to finish at the daily high of 6,079.50 after trading between 6,029.15.

Among the actives, Bank Danamon Indonesia tumbled 1.82 percent, while Bank CIMB Niaga shed 0.46 percent, Bank Negara Indonesia collected 1.27 percent, Bank Central Asia was down 0.40 percent, Bank Mandiri fell 0.40 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia improved 1.38 percent, Indosat tanked 3.36 percent, Indocement added 0.58 percent, Semen Indonesia sank 2.04 percent, Indofood Suskes climbed 1.14 percent, United Tractors surrendered 2.47 percent, Aneka Tambang lost 0.43 percent, Vale Indonesia plunged 2.71 percent, Timah advanced 0.98 percent and Astra International, Bumi Resources and Astra Agro Lestari were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as stocks moved sharply higher on Thursday, offsetting losses from the previous session and sending the Dow and the S&P 500 to fresh record closing highs.

The Dow spiked 305.10 points or 0.90 percent to finish at 34,035.99, while the NASDAQ jumped 180.92 points or 1.31 percent to end at 14,038.76 and the S&P 500 gained 45.76 points or 1.11 percent to close at 4,170.42.

The rally on Wall Street followed a batch of largely upbeat U.S. economic data, including a Commerce Department report showing retail sales spiked much more than expected in March. A separate report from by the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits pulled back much more than expected last week.

Also, The National Association of Home Builders noted a modest increase in U.S. homebuilder confidence in April, while the Federal Reserve reported a rebound in industrial production last month.

Oil futures settled higher on Thursday, extending gains to a fourth straight session, continuing to ride on the recent upward revision in the global oil demand forecast by the International Energy Agency. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $0.31 or 0.5 percent at $63.46 a barrel.