ID :
43783
Mon, 02/02/2009 - 22:05
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/43783
The shortlink copeid
BI TO KEEP RUPIAH AT RP11,300 - RP11,500 PER US DOLLAR
Jakarta, Feb 2 (ANTARA) - Banking observer Kostaman Thayib said he was optimistic that Bank Indonesia (BI) would do its best to prevent the rupiah which fell to Rp11,790 per US dollar on Monday morning from plunging to Rp12,000 per US dollar.
"It is unlikely that the rupiah will weaken to Rp12,000 per dollar because the central bank will intervene in the market and release dollars from its foreign exhcange reserves," Kostaman said here on Monday.
He said the central bank wanted to maintain the rupiah exchange rate within a range of Rp11,300 - Rp11,500 per dollar.
Kostaman said that market pressures had caused the rupiah to drop on Monday but the pressures were temporary and would ease on Tuesday so that the rupiah was expected to strengthen again.
BI's intervention would strengthen the rupiah again after foreign investors withdrew and returned their (dollar) funds to their countries which needed large amounts of funds to boost their economies.
He said that BI would not allow the rupiah to plunge to Rp12,000 per US dollar which constituted the psychological level of rupiah's exchange rate . If the rupiah reached this level it was feared it would fall into a downward spiral that was difficult to control.
Kostaman hoped therefore that the government would soon implement its economic stimulus package in order to boost the country's economic performance in line with the downward trend in inflation in January.
The rupiah dropped sharply against the US dollar in the Jakarta interbank spot market on Monday as market players continued to buy the greenback.
The Indonesian currency traded at Rp11,790/12,010 per US dollar, down 414 points from Rp11,376/11,400 at the market's close at the weekend (Friday, Jan 30).
Edwin Sinaga, a money market analyst, said the publics lack of confidence in the rupiah had caused the local currency to tumble.