RI stock market tumbles 10 percent

Tue, 10/07/2008 9:59 AM | Headlines

Feeling the pinch of the global economic turmoil, the Indonesian stock market dropped by more than 10 percent Monday amid massive sell-offs worldwide.

The market plunged 10.03 percent to close at 1,648.74 on the first day of trading after the Idul Fitri holidays. The loss is the biggest since the 2002 Bali bombings, according to Bloomberg.

The local market suffered the biggest drop of Asian markets, which declined by an average of 5 percent on Monday's trading.

Among the biggest decliners was PT Bakrie & Brothers, a diversified business group linked to the family of chief social welfare minister Aburizal Bakrie. Its share price dropped by 40.82 percent to Rp 145 (1.5 U.S. cents).

The massive drop forced the market authority to suspend trading in shares of Bakrie and its units -- the country's largest coal producer, PT Bumi Resources, PT Bakrie Sumatera Plantations, PT Energi Mega Persada, PT Bakrie Telecom, and PT Bakrieland Development, all of which fell by more than 30 percent on average.

Also on Monday, the rupiah dropped by 1.5 percent to Rp 9,575 as investors dumped their holdings and converted gains to the dollar. -- JP/Ika Krismantari

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