Indonesia Stock Market May Extend Wednesday’s Gains

The Indonesia stock market bounced higher again on Wednesday, one session after ending the two-day winning streak in which it had advanced almost 100 points or 1.7 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index now rests just beneath the 6,030-point plateau and it’s likely to open higher again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, led by a strong rebound in energy stocks. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are predicted to follow that lead.

The JCI finished slightly higher on Wednesday as gains from the financials and cement companies were capped by weakness from the resource companies.

For the day, the index rose 12.58 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 6,029.98 after trading between 6,020.86 and 6,053.19.

Among the actives, Bank Danamon Indonesia rallied 2.35 percent, while Bank CIMB Niaga jumped 2.11 percent, Bank Negara Indonesia climbed 1.66 percent, Bank Central Asia was up 0.08 percent, Bank Mandiri spiked 3.04 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia collected 1.06 percent, Indosat skidded 1.63 percent, Indocement accelerated 2.94 percent, Semen Indonesia soared 2.91 percent, Indofood Suskes tumbled 1.88 percent, United Tractors fell 0.26 percent, Astra International gathered 1.88 percent, Astra Agro Lestari dropped 0.95 percent, Aneka Tambang plunged 3.03 percent, Vale Indonesia retreated 1.87 percent, Timah declined 2.36 percent, Energi Mega Persada plummeted 5.31 percent and Bumi Resources was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is solid as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and remained firmly in the green throughout the session.

The Dow jumped 286.01 points or 0.83 percent to finish at 34,798.00, while the NASDAQ climbed 133.08 points or 0.92 percent to end at 14,631.95 and the S&P 500 added 35.63 points or 0.82 percent to close at 4,358.69.

The continued strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to the latest batch of earnings news from several big-name companies including Coca-Cola (KO), Verizon (VZ) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), although Netflix (NFLX) disappointed.

Energy stocks spiked as crude oil futures settled sharply higher on Wednesday, rebounding strongly after suffering a sharp drop earlier in the week. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for September ended up $3.10 or 4.6 percent at $70.30 a barrel.

Significant strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 3.2 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. The index continued to rebound after ending Monday’s trading at a five-month closing low.

Closer to home, the central bank in Indonesia will wrap up its monetary policy meeting later today and then announce its decision on interest rates.

The central bank is expected to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 3.50 percent, its deposit facility rate steady at 2.75 percent and its lending facility rate unchanged at 4.25 percent.