Hit by the Wall Street Crash, Regional Stock Exchanges Plummet

Asian stock market indices closed lower on May 18, 2017, except for the Indonesian stock exchange. The previous day's fall in Wall Street prices impacted regional markets, with the exception of the Jakarta Composite Index (IHSG).

Investor uncertainty regarding the realization of President Donald Trump's tax cut policy and heightened political tensions in the United States related to investigations into state secret leaks triggered selling pressure on the American stock exchange. As a result, the Dow Jones index closed down 372.82 points (1.78 percent) on May 17, 2017, local time, compared to the previous day's close.

The Japanese stock market led the decline in Asian markets, weakening by 1.32 percent to 19,553.86, followed by the Indian stock market, down 0.69 percent to 30,445.82, and the Hong Kong stock market, down 0.62 percent to 25,136.52. Meanwhile, the IHSG closed in positive territory, strengthening by 0.53 percent to 5,564.45. Anticipation of the Bank Indonesia (BI) maintaining its 7-Day Repo Rate at 4.75 percent and the positive sentiment surrounding the inclusion of 10 new Indonesian stocks in the MSCI Global Small Cap Index supported the IHSG's rise.