Dasco and Rosan Visit the Stock Exchange Amid IHSG Slump
Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, together with Danantara’s chief executive Rosan Roeslani and OJK Commissioner Friderica Widyasari Dewi, visited the Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI) on Tuesday, 19 May. The visit occurred amid a decline in the Jakarta Composite Index (IHSG) in recent days.
Dasco said they discussed how to strengthen global investor confidence and efforts to continue growing retail investors. “We listened to presentations from the exchange operators on how they refine regulations to reassure investors and to make local investors feel comfortable, and we can see that growth in local or retail investors is continuing,” Dasco said.
With the fundamentals in place, he is confident that Indonesian exchanges will be stronger going forward. “Hopefully we will see results after the 29th; everything done through hard work and good intentions will bear fruit,” he said.
He also thanked the efforts of the exchange’s leadership and the OJK for working hard in recent days to navigate global market conditions and domestic dynamics.
Rosan Roeslani, CEO of Danantara, praised the OJK and BEI for taking affirmative actions to continually improve the exchange and make it more transparent. “If you look today, tomorrow, or a week from now, our approach is long-term. I am convinced that in the long run our market will continue to grow in terms of market capitalisation, number of issuers, and investors,” he said.
He noted that investor confidence is evident in the total number of retail investors reaching 27 million, up from 20 million last year. “Logically, this increase happens because our investors are confident the exchange will improve and be more promising going forward. If not, the number of investors would fall,” he added.
Separately, OJK Chairman Friderica Widyasari Dewi assessed that the IHSG’s weakness in recent days is in line with regional market trends. She attributed the condition to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and expectations of a hawkish global monetary policy.
“We see many other markets also falling, with some only modestly rising today,” she said.
At the opening of trading today, the IHSG was in the red at 6,599.213. According to RTI data recorded up to 09.25 WIB, the IHSG fell by 23.417 points or 0.35% to 6,575.822.
Friderica added that the IHSG weakness is also linked to domestic sentiment after MSCI’s rebalancing decision on 12 May US time (13 May Indonesia time). It continued until the market reopened after a short break.
“However, in our view the weakness remains moderate, at 1.98% on the first day of the MSCI announcement, and 1.85% yesterday on 18 May after the long holiday,” she said.