Indonesia shares slide on MSCI worries

BENGALURU: Indonesian stocks slumped on Tuesday as index-compiler MSCI’s downgrade warning last month continued to weigh on investor sentiment, while a deepening tech rout pushed most regional bourses sharply lower.

Jakarta’s benchmark index, the world’s worst-performing stock market this year, fell more than 3 percent as investors remained unconvinced regarding the stock market and government response to MSCI concerns regarding opaque ownership and coordinated trading behaviour.

For the year, the index is down 43 percent.

Analysts at Bank of America said in a note that recent policy measures by Bank Indonesia and MSCI’s proposed downgrade had undermined market confidence.

In Singapore, the benchmark index fell to a four-month low and was on course for a fourth straight session in the red, as banking stocks weighed on the market.

Tuesday’s declines were led by banking heavyweights DBS Group, United Overseas Bank and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp ahead of their earnings later in the week.

Disappointing US corporate earnings have stoked worries across global markets that the debt-fuelled AI infrastructure buildout may not yield profit quickly enough.

MSCI’s emerging markets index fell 1.8 percent to its lowest level since late July, led by losses in tech-heavy gauges in South Korea and Taiwan. Both stock markets closed down 3.6 percent.

Oracle’s fundraising plans and Anthropic’s updated IPO filing on Monday heightened investor concerns about valuations and the costs of pursuing growth in the sector.