IHSG Closes Higher, Boosted by Corporate Earnings Season

The Indonesian Composite Index (IHSG) on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI) closed higher on Thursday, supported by the first-half 2026 financial reporting season for listed companies. The IHSG closed up 94.99 points, or 1.56%, at 6,186.36. Meanwhile, the LQ45 index of 45 leading stocks rose 12.34 points, or 2.03%, to 618.86. “The IHSG rebounded amid external market pressures and uncertainty regarding the succession at Bank Indonesia. The strengthening was supported by gains in blue-chip stocks and the financial report release season,” said Maximilianus Nico Demus, Associate Director of Research and Investment at Pilarmas Investindo Sekuritas, in his analysis in Jakarta on Thursday. On the domestic front, Nico noted that the market’s rise was still limited by uncertainty over the leadership succession at Bank Indonesia, fiscal pressures, and obstacles to mineral exports. Additionally, market participants are preparing to scrutinise several important domestic economic data releases next week, including July 2026 inflation data, the May 2026 trade balance, and second-quarter 2026 GDP growth. From overseas, Asian regional bourses moved variably as market participants re-evaluated the policy outlook for the US central bank, the Fed, after it decided to maintain its benchmark interest rate. Three members of the FOMC meeting expressed dissenting opinions by supporting a rate hike, while Fed Chair Kevin Warsh stressed that the decision to hold rates should not be viewed as a signal that monetary policy will remain passive. Warsh also added that the future policy direction will continue to depend on incoming economic data. Market participants now estimate a 67% chance of a 25 basis point Fed rate hike in September 2026, up from 56% the previous day. Meanwhile, expectations for a more aggressive 50 basis point hike have now almost completely disappeared. The IHSG opened higher and remained in positive territory until the close of the first trading session. In the second session, the IHSG stayed in the green zone until the close of stock trading. Based on the IDX-IC Sectoral Indices, all eleven sectors strengthened, led by the primary consumer goods sector which rose 1.87%, followed by the non-primary consumer goods and energy sectors which gained 1.86% and 1.67% respectively. Stocks that experienced the largest gains included ESTI, MDIA, TFIA, KJEN, and NICK. Meanwhile, stocks that weakened the most were BLUE, AKSI, FLMC, HELI, and ZONE. Share trading frequency was recorded at 1,741,000 transactions, with 29.70 billion shares traded, worth Rp12.92 trillion. A total of 511 shares rose, 171 fell, and 281 were unchanged. Among regional Asian stock markets on Thursday afternoon, the Nikkei index strengthened 431.81 points, or 0.70%, to 61,866.00; the Shanghai index weakened 0.62 points, or 0.10%, to 3,804.69; the Hang Seng index strengthened 50.96 points, or 0.20%, to 25,858.88; and the Straits Times index weakened 39.61 points, or 0.69%, to 5,673.58.