(RTTNews) - The Indonesia stock market has tracked lower in three sessions, giving up more than 200 points or 2.8 percent along the way. The Jakarta Composite Index now sits just beneath the 7,260-point plateau although it's likely to open to the upside on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher, with strong support expected from the technology companies. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead. The JCI finished modestly lower on Monday following losses from the resource stocks and a mixed performance from the financial sector. For the day, the index dropped 66.16 points or 0.90 percent to finish at 7,258.63 after trading between 7,204.65 and 7,320.79. Among the actives, Bank CIMB Niaga shed 0.56 percent, while Bank Mandiri collected 0.83 percent, Bank Negara Indonesia tumbled 1.90 percent, Bank Central Asia added 0.50 percent, Bank Rakyat Indonesia jumped 1.92 percent, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison retreated 1.52 percent, Semen Indonesia skidded 1.18 percent, Indofood Sukses Makmur lost 0.61 percent, United Tractors fell 0.36 percent, Energi Mega Persada retreated 1.64 percent, Astra Agro Lestari dropped 0.81 percent, Aneka Tambang stumbled 1.58 percent, Jasa Marga tanked 2.02 percent, Vale Indonesia surrendered 2.53 percent, Timah plummeted 5.51 percent, Bumi Resources slumped 2.80 percent and Bank Danamon Indonesia, Bank Maybank Indonesia, Indocement and Astra International were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages opened mixed on Monday and finished largely the same way.
The Dow shed 110.58 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 43,717.48, while the NASDAQ surged 247.17 points or 1.24 percent to close at a record 20,173.89 and the S&P 500 advanced 22.99 points or 0.38 percent to end at 6,074.08.
The general strength on Wall Street reflected optimism about the outlook for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision later today. The Fed is widely expected to continue cutting interest rates, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating a 99.1 percent chance the central bank will lower rates by another 25 basis points.
The surge by the NASDAQ came amid significant strength among semiconductor stocks, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumping by 2.1 percent. Networking stocks also saw considerable strength, extending a recent upward trend, driving the NYSE Arca Networking Index up by 2.0 percent to a new record closing high.
Buying interest was somewhat subdued, however, as recent data showing inflation remains somewhat sticky has led to some worries the Fed will lower rates slower than previously anticipated next year.
In U.S. economic news, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York released a report showing a sharp pullback by its reading on regional manufacturing activity in the month of December.
Crude oil prices fell on Monday amid concerns about the outlook for demand after weak economic data from China and the threat of tariffs. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January closed down $0.58 at $70.71 a barrel.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
