Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati revealed that the rupiah exchange rate appreciated or strengthened by 2.08% in September 2024.

Sri Mulyani explained that the appreciation of the rupiah exchange rate was due to the inflow of capital back into the country and the consistency of various monetary policies from Bank Indonesia. She explained that the rupiah exchange rate strengthened to reach IDR 15,140 per US dollar at the end of September 2024.

This means that the rupiah at the end of September 2024 appreciated or strengthened by 2.08% month to month from the previous month, compared to the position at the end of August, said Sri Mulyani in a press conference of the Financial System Stability Committee (KSSK) at the Bank Indonesia Office, Central Jakarta, Friday (18/10/2024). She explained that several currencies in regional countries also appreciated during September 2024. However, she admitted that the strengthening of the rupiah was much higher.

Like the Korean Won which also appreciated at 2.02%, the Philippine Peso also appreciated by 0.17% month to month, and the Indian Rupee which strengthened by 0.1%, said Sri Mulyani.

In addition, Sri Mulyani also admitted that the rupiah experienced depreciation or weakening by 2.82% point to point from the previous month. According to her, the weakening was due to the acceleration of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. As a result, continued Sri Mulyani, speculation about rising oil prices increased. However, she reminded that the Middle East is a major region that produces oil.

However, when compared to the rupiah at the end of December 2023, our rupiah exchange rate has depreciated by 1.17% year to date—so from the end of December to October 15. The 1.17% depreciation is also still better than regional currencies such as the Philippine Peso, even the Taiwanese Dollar and the Korean Won, he said.

Going forward, he predicted that the rupiah exchange rate would continue to strengthen in line with attractive yields, relatively low inflation, and good prospects for Indonesias economic growth.

Sri Mulyani emphasized that all monetary instruments would continue to be optimized, including Bank Indonesias pro-market monetary operations strategy through SRBI, SVBI, and SUVBI. Thus, foreign capital flows would continue to flow in to support the stability of the rupiah exchange rate.

Of course, the foundation and fundamentals of the economy from the real side are also maintained by the government, such as the momentum of economic growth, price stability, low inflation, and job creation, he concluded.

Source : www.msn.com

Oct 19, 2024