Unilever Drives JCI to Close High

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta -Speculative buying of prospective stocks became the catalyst for the index to post yet another record. On Tuesday's trading session at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) gained 34.32 points (0.69 percent) to close at 5,034.07.

The stock of Unilever Indonesia (IDX: UNVR) surprisingly became the driver for the index gain. UNVR posted a 14.1 percent increase, closing the trade at Rp26,250 per share.

BNI Securities' analyst Thendra Crisnanda said investors' decision to buy blue chip stocks managed to lift the index back to the 5,000 level. "In a time where positive sentiment is lacking, market participants are hunting stocks that are domestically oriented," he said on Tuesday, April 30.

The lack of clarity regarding the subsidized fuel price policy and expectations of a continued monetary stimulus in the European Central Bank (ECB) and the US leave stock traders with no other choice but to opt for safe havens.

Consumer-based stocks and property are still in high demand amid the lack of positive sentiments. The still-recovering global economy, coupled with Indonesia's own long-term economic outlook which is predicted to grow, is expected to encourage the growth of the middle class to above 50 percent, leading to a higher demand for said consumer and property products.

However, Thendra said that investors need to keep an eye Unilever's skyrocketing price as it did not stem from one strong factor. There is a possibility that UNVR's price was pushed deliberately to help the JCI penetrate the 5,000 level. "Therefore, investors need to be aware of profit taking over UNVR," he said.

Today the index is predicted to fluctuate in the range of 5,015 to 5,071. Prospective stocks include those of Kawasan Industri Jababeka (KIJA), Bumi Serpong Damai (BSDE), Sentul City (BKSL), and Pakuwon Jati (PWON).

PDAT | M. AZHAR