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Rupiah weakens to 12,910 per dollar
The rupiah exchange rate traded among banks in Jakarta on Wednesday morning weakened by nine points to Rp 12,910 per US dollar from Rp 12,901
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he rupiah exchange rate traded among banks in Jakarta on Wednesday morning weakened by nine points to Rp 12,910 per US dollar from Rp 12,901.
Samuel Sekuritas economist Rangga Cipta said in Jakarta on Wednesday that the dollar appreciated after the US economy data released on Tuesday evening was better than the previous period.
He said US inflation, which was continuously improving, was strong enough to push the dollar to strengthen against the majority of the world's currencies.
'The situation has stopped the rupiah's strengthening trend today. However, we still see ample room for rupiah to strengthen again in the short term,' said Rangga as quoted by Antara.
In general, the analyst said, the US dollar could still depreciate again in light of market expectations that the US durable goods orders data to be released later this week would decline.
Meanwhile, Bank Himpunan Saudara financial market analyst Rully Nova said Bank Indonesia (BI), which was still present in the foreign currency market, would fight heavier pressure on the rupiah.
Moreover, Indonesia's foreign exchange reserve amounting to US$115.5 billion as of the end of February was still above the international adequacy standard for around three-month imports.
'That amount of foreign exchange reserves can support external sector resilience and help Indonesia's economy to grow sustainably,' said Rully.
The analyst further said the central bank's policy to maintain its benchmark interest rate (BI Rate) at around 7.50 percent was considered still in line with its efforts to achieve a target of 4 plus-minus-1 percent inflation in 2015-2016. (ebf)
