ASIA FX: SEA FX Continues To Rally, THB Back To Early 2023 Highs

South East Asia currencies are all firmer against the USD, albeit to varying degrees. PHP FX has been one of the strongest performers, up 0.60%. THB and IDR are also up firmly, MYR has seen slightly more modest gains. Broader USD softness, particularly against the yen, has likely seen positive spill over to the region. 

• Thailand related asset sentiment has been on a firmer footing in recent sessions. Local equities have surged and are more than 10% above recent August lows, with strong offshore inflows. USD/THB sits near 33.55, slightly up from session lows, but this still fresh lows back to early 2023.
• USD/PHP is under 56.00, last near 55.90, so still being somewhat of a laggard compared to THB and MYR. Earlier lows in the pair came close to 55.28 back in March of this year. On the data front, the unemployment rose dramatically in July according to release from the Philippines Statistics Authority.
• USD/IDR is down 0.30%, last near 15350. Recent lows come in at 15310. The data showed Indonesia's foreign reserves were US$150.2b in August higher than the July print of US$145.4b, according to Bank Indonesia.
• USD/MYR is lower but holding above recent lows, last near 4.3300. MYR is up 6% year to date, easily the best performer in EM Asia FX (THB is next best at +1.75%). So, some slowing in relative outperformance may not be surprising.