The Philippine peso and the Singapore dollar eased on Monday on dollar short covering, though equity inflows to the region will likely keep other Asian currencies trending higher in the near term. The peso eased on dollar demand for fixing and a overall rise in the greenback.
The Singapore dollar edged lower as investors booked profits from its rally to a record high on Friday and selling by interbank speculators. But its falls were limited with bids on the unit lined up around 1.2650 per dollar, traders said. Offshore hedge funds bought the won although currency players remained cautious over possible dollar-buying intervention by South Korea's foreign exchange authorities.
Demand from the hedge funds came as foreign investors remained net buyers of Seoul shares for a ninth consecutive session. Still, players stayed wary of intervention with importers buying the pair on dips for settlements, forcing the local currency to retreat from 1,111.5 per dollar, its strongest since February 21.