RUPIAH SIGNIFICANTLY GAINS EARLY THURSDAY

Jakarta, April 2 (ANTARA) - The rupiah significantly surged against the US dollar early Thursday thanks to the money market's continuous positive sentiment.

The Indonesian currency traded at Rp11,540/11,570 per US dollar, up 140 points from Rp11,680/11,690 per US dollar.
The local currency still had a chance to strengthen until it would reach nearly Rp11,500 per US dollar as the market's sentiment was still positive, said Rully Nova, foreign currency analyst of PT Bank Himpunan Saudara Tbk, here on Thursday.
The rupiah's position was relatively strong because market players were optimistic that Bank Indonesia (BI) would enter the domestic money market if the rupiah's condition was under pressure, he said.
He said that BI, the country's central bank, having strong foreign exchange reserves thanks to the supports from the Asean+3 Forum, China and Japan, would protect and prevent the local currency from plunging.
"We see that the rupiah movement which is still not far from the level of Rp11,500 per US dollar, shows that BI remains in the market," he said.
Indonesia's economy still grew especially because there would be the upcoming general elections which helped boost the economic growth, thanks to the influx of local businessmen's funds into the domestic market, he said.