Rupiah Now Stable Based on Market Mechanism, BI Says

Jakarta, MINA — The exchange value of the rupiah currency against the US dollar has been stable based on the market mechanism, Antara News reported, quoting Bank Indonesia`s (BI`s) monetary authorities.

BI Governor Perry Warjiyo stated in Jakarta on Friday that the currency had stabilized when the rupiah exchange rate moved around Rp15,200 per US dollar.

“The exchange conditions remained stable, supply and demand in the markets went well, and the market mechanism moved well,” Warjiyo noted.

The rupiah exchange rate in the Jakarta Interbank Spot Rate (Jisdor) announced on the BI page on Friday shows that the rupiah is at Rp15.221 per US dollar.

Warjiyo remarked that the rupiah`s current exchange rate indicates the confidence of market players, including global investors, in the domestic economic conditions.

“Global developments from day to day have new news. It is natural if the rupiah exchange rate moves to respond,” he pointed out.

The movement of the rupiah exchange rate, after breaking the level of Rp15 thousand per US dollar, is relatively stable, with a low level of volatility.

Economists call the rupiah exchange rate, which is already around Rp15 thousand per US dollar, a new equilibrium point reflecting the fundamental condition of Indonesia`s economy.

Economist Agustinus Prasetyantoko believes it will be difficult for the rupiah to regain strength from the current level, given the uncertain global economic condition that has led to tightening global liquidity.

“With limited supplies and liquidity, we will not go back to Rp13 thousand or Rp14 thousand,” Augustine, who is also rector of the Atma Jaya Catholic University, stated on Wednesday (Oct 17).

To mitigate the impact of global economic uncertainty over the rest of the year, banks forecast that BI will raise its benchmark 7-day reverse repo rate again this year to six percent, after hiking it five times over the year.

“BI`s benchmark interest will still increase by 25 basis points,” Bank Mandiri Deputy President Director Sulaiman Arif Arianto stated on Wednesday (Oct 17). (T/Sj/RS5)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)