SINGAPORE, June 24 (Reuters) - Indonesian stocks rose
slightly on Wednesday after index provider MSCI pushed its
review on the country's emerging markets status to November to
assess the slate of reform measures rolled out by Jakarta.
Indonesia's benchmark index gained 0.34% in early
trading on Wednesday. The index is down 29% so far this year,
making it the world's worst-performing major stock market.
Indonesian assets have been hammered since January, when
MSCI froze the country's stocks in its indexes and raised the
prospect of a downgrade to frontier status, leading to a flurry
of reforms, including moves to raise free-float levels.
The index provider late on Tuesday called those measures a
"step in the right direction", but warned it would consider
options such as a consultation on a downgrade to frontier status
if sufficient progress was not evident by its November review.
Gary Tan, portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments,
said the outcome was in line with market expectations, with the
tone of MSCI's statement more cautionary than outright negative.
"What stood out is the clear shift toward implementation and
measurable outcomes, signalling that announced reforms alone are
not sufficient," Tan said.
"The extension of the review to November keeps pressure on
regulators and effectively kicks the decision down the road."
Indonesia's financial regulator said on Wednesday the MSCI
announcement would serve as momentum to strengthen and
accelerate the capital market reform agendas initiated since
January.
MSCI in April had extended its review of Indonesian markets
to June, and in May cut several companies - most of which were
tied to tycoons - from its indexes.