Indonesia Stock Market May Run Out Of Steam On Wednesday

The Indonesia stock market has tracked higher in back-to-back sessions, collecting almost 25 points or 0.4 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now rests just above the 6,035-point plateau although the rally may stall on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft as traders take a wait-and-see attitude regarding stimulus and coronavirus vaccines. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses slightly lower and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The JCI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the financials, telecoms, cement stocks and resource companies.

For the day, the index gained 12.88 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 6,036.17 after trading between 6,026.71 and 6,143.87.

Among the actives, Bank Danamon Indonesia dropped 0.92 percent, while Bank Mandiri collected 0.39 percent, Bank CIMB Niaga rallied 2.97 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia gained 1.21 percent, Bank Central Asia was up 0.74 percent, Telekom Malaysia climbed 1.79 percent, Indosat added 0.48 percent, Indocement gathered 2.49 percent, Semen Indonesia advanced 1.00 percent, Energi Mega Persada skyrocketed 6.25 percent, Astra Agro Lestari soared 3.20 percent, Aneka Tambang surged 5.99 percent, Vale Indonesia jumped 1.96 percent, Timah spiked 4.04 percent, Astra International fell 0.41 percent and Bank Negara Indonesia, Bumi Resources and Indofood Suskes were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mildly negative as stocks failed to sustain an initial move to the upside and moved modestly lower over the course of the trading session on Tuesday.

The Dow shed 68.30 points or 0.22 percent to finish at 30,335.67, while the NASDAQ sank 49.20 points or 0.38 percent to end at 12,850.22 and the S&P 500 fell 8.32 points or 0.22 percent to close at 3,727.04.

Stocks initially benefited from window dressing, as some fund managers looked to further boost their portfolios going into the end of the year. The initial advance lifted the major averages to new record intraday highs, although buying interest waned shortly after the start of trading.

Traders also kept an eye on developments in Washington after President Donald Trump signed a coronavirus relief and government spending bill over the weekend.

Trump called for the direct payments included in the bill to be increased to $2,000 from $600, and the House voted Monday to approve a measure increasing the size of the stimulus checks. However, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ken., blocked an effort by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to unanimously approve the House bill.

Crude oil prices moved higher on Tuesday amid hopes energy demand will pick up if U.S. policymakers decide to provide additional stimulus to boost economic growth. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February ended higher by $0.38 or 0.8 percent at $48.00 a barrel.

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