Purbaya: If You Have US Dollars, Sell Now

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa signalled to holders of United States dollars in Indonesia to sell the greenback immediately, arguing that the rupiah is expected to strengthen in the near term. ‘So I repeat again, if you have dollars, sell now,’ Purbaya said at the Jogjakarta Financial Festival at Jogja Expo Centre (JEC) on Friday, 21 May 2026. He emphasised that the rupiah’s appreciation will occur because of the implementation of the new Devisa Hasil Ekspor Sumber Daya Alam (DHE SDA) rule, which will bolster exchange-rate strength. As is known, the government will apply the new DHE SDA regulation effective from 1 June 2026. In addition, the government has been actively stabilising government bonds in the debt market to maintain investor confidence to park their dollars domestically, thereby keeping the dollar supply in check. This includes selling global bonds denominated in US dollars. ‘We are selling US$3.4 billion, meaning US2billioninbondsand€1.25billion.Ifthatmoneycomeshere, itwilladdtoourdollarsupply, soIreiterateagainthattherupiahwillstrengthen, ′hesaid.Therefore, henotedthatthepublicshouldnotfretabouttheexchange − rateweakness, asthegovernmenttargetsstrengtheningtoRp15, 000perUS. ’I tell FX traders to quickly dump their dollars. We will push the rupiah to Rp 15,000 per US dollar,’ said Purbaya.