Asian authorities move to defend currencies as dollar pressure mounts
Why it matters: The won and rupiah led regional losses as officials in South Korea, Indonesia, Japan, India and the Philippines stepped up defenses.
Asian policymakers stepped up efforts to steady their currencies as a stronger US dollar, high oil prices and expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening rattled regional markets. South Korea pledged to curb excessive won volatility after the currency slid near its weakest level against the dollar since 2009. Bank Indonesia intensified intervention to stabilize the rupiah after it fell to a record low. Japan signaled readiness to respond as the yen weakened toward levels that prompted intervention in late April, while India weighed tax cuts and looser bond-ownership rules to attract inflows. The Philippines also tightened scrutiny of offshore FX derivatives to deter speculative pressure.