Mar'ie sees rupiah fall as excessive<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Finance Mar'ie Muhammad has said the
\nrate of the rupiah depreciation against the American dollar had,
\nthus far, been extremely excessive and in defiance of all sound
\neconomic parameters.<\/p>\n
\"The rupiah rate, which has lately hovered between 4,950 and
\n5,000 to the dollar, no longer reflects the true condition of our
\neconomy,\" Mar'ie said over the weekend in Bengkulu.<\/p>\n
He expressed confidence that the rupiah would eventually
\nstrengthen to a more reasonable rate. But he stopped short of
\nestimating what should be the real worth of the rupiah vis-a-vis
\nthe greenback.<\/p>\n
\"I don't think something that is abnormal could last forever,\"
\nMar'ie said when he inaugurated a new venture capital company in
\nBengkulu, a province in southwest Sumatra.<\/p>\n
The rupiah closed last week at 5,000 against the dollar,
\nreflecting a 53 percent depreciation since July, when financial
\ncrises started in several East Asian countries, beginning with
\nThailand.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie sees the currency turbulence facing the nation as much
\nmore than simply a monetary upheaval.<\/p>\n
\"We are encountering uphill challenges or a crisis of the 21st
\ncentury.\" he pointed out.<\/p>\n
But this does not mean we are entering a dead-end dark tunnel,
\nMar'ie added.<\/p>\n
\"Instead of being mired in pessimism, we should work harder,
\npooling our resources and doing our homework to get out of this
\ncrisis.\"<\/p>\n
He said not all businesses were bleak amid the currency
\nupheaval, citing agrobusinesses such as shrimp farming and tree
\ncrops as quite promising in the export market.<\/p>\n
\"These agrobusinesses are very promising because their costs
\nare almost entirely in rupiah and their products are enjoying
\nstrong demand in the international market,\" he pointed out.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie added that the newly established venture capital
\ncompany would help develop small businesses in Bengkulu through
\nequity and loan funds.<\/p>\n
PT Sarana Bengkulu Ventura is jointly owned by the state
\nventure capital company PT Bahana Artha Ventura, businessmen
\nHutomo Mandala Putra, Robby Sumampouw and Rully Chairul Anwar,
\nand major companies such as PT Gudang Garam and Bank Central
\nAsia. (vin)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/marie-sees-rupiah-fall-as-excessive-1447893297",
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