Indonesia's IDX Closes Higher as Market Monitors VP's Economic Policy Direction (Friday, December 22, 2023)

The Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) rose 27.9 points or 0.39% to close at 7,237.51 on Friday (December 22, 2023).

The index strengthened amid market players still observing the economic policy direction of the presidential and vice-presidential candidates in the debate held Friday evening.

“The debate is interesting to follow because it can at least provide clues as to the direction of each vice-presidential candidate's policies, which will have a significant impact on Indonesia's future economic policies,” said the Lotus Andalan Sekuritas Research Team, as reported by Antara, Friday (December 22, 2023).

According to the Lotus Andalan Sekuritas Research Team, market focus remains on tonight's vice-presidential debate, scheduled for 7 PM WIB, featuring three vice-presidential candidates: Muhaimin Iskandar, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, and Mahfud MD.

The second debate's theme is people's economy and digital economy, finance, investment tax, trade, management of the State Budget (APBN) and Regional Budget (APBD), infrastructure, and urban development.

Based on the IDX-IC Sectoral Index, seven sectors increased, led by the basic materials sector at 0.78%, followed by the consumer staples sector and the finance sector, which rose by 0.68% and 0.38%, respectively.

Meanwhile, four sectors declined, with the transportation & logistics sector falling the most at -1.21%, followed by the technology and infrastructure sectors, which fell by 0.81% and 0.27%, respectively.

Based on RTI Business data, the frequency of stock trades on the domestic exchange today reached 866,660 transactions.

A total of 41.52 billion shares changed hands, with a total transaction value of Rp 15.84 trillion.

MEDS was today's top gainer, surging 18.75%, followed by RAJA and LPPF, which rose by 14.18% and 9.91%, respectively.

On the other hand, KAYU was the top loser, plunging 25%, followed by HUMI and TBMS, which fell by 16.96% and 11.76%, respectively.

Asian regional stock exchanges showed varied movements this afternoon. The Nikkei index strengthened by 28.6 points or 0.09% to 33,169.10, the Hang Seng index weakened by 280.72 points or 1.69% to 16,340.41, the Shanghai index weakened by 3.94 points or 0.13% to 2,914.78, and the Straits Times index strengthened by 27.82 points or 0.89% to 3,140.32.