BI says rupiah

BI says rupiah
to rise in 2005

JAKARTA: Bank Indonesia (BI) said it expects the rupiah to
"gradually" strengthen against the dollar this year, supported by
foreign investment inflows, the central bank governor said.

"Dollar supply is estimated to increase from overseas
portfolio investment as well as an increase in foreign-direct
investment, in line with a better investment environment,"
helping support the rupiah, BI Governor Burhanuddin Abdullah said
in statement to lawmakers on Monday.

The currency fell 0.2 percent to 9,496 against the dollar as
of 10:23 a.m. Jakarta time, a decline of 2.4 percent this year,
the third-worst performer among the 15 Asia-Pacific currencies
tracked by Bloomberg. The benchmark Jakarta Composite Index of
stocks rose 2.8 percent in dollar terms this year.-- Bloomberg