Purbaya Guarantees Subsidised Fuel Unaffected by Rp17,600 Dollar Exchange Rate
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has requested that the public remain unconcerned regarding the fate of the energy subsidy budget, including fuel subsidies, even as the rupiah’s exchange rate against the US dollar has breached the Rp17,600/US$ level. He revealed that the government has prepared anticipatory scenarios to maintain the stability of energy subsidies, despite the official macro assumptions stated in the 2026 State Budget Law being set at Rp16,500/US$, significantly lower than the current exchange rate.
“When we calculated it, the rupiah rate was not the same as the previous budget assumption. So, it is roughly like that,” said Purbaya when met at the Directorate General of Taxes Building, Gatot Subroto, South Jakarta, on Monday (18/5/2026).
As is well known, the weakening of the rupiah has the potential to increase the energy subsidy burden because a large portion of crude oil and fuel imports utilise US dollars. However, Purbaya emphasised that the fiscal condition and anticipatory scenarios have been prepared to safeguard energy subsidy stability.
“If I mention the specific figures, people might think ‘oh, this is what the government wants’, but no. We have already calculated it, so there is no need to worry,” he stated. He further noted that as long as he remains smiling, it indicates that Indonesia’s economic condition is performing well, adding, “If I am smiling, the economy is good, and so is the rupiah.”
It is noted that the rupiah closed weaker against the US dollar in Monday’s trading (18/5/2026). According to Refinitiv data, the rupiah ended in the red, weakening by 1.03% to the level of Rp17,640/US.ThislevelsawtherupiahbreachthepsychologicalareaaboveRp17, 000/US, marking its weakest closing position in history. Throughout today’s trading, the rupiah opened at Rp17,630/US$ and briefly weakened further to touch Rp17,670/US$ before finally settling at the closing level. Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index (DXY) was observed to have weakened by 0.11% to the level of 99.174 at 15:00 WIB.