RUPIAH

RUPIAH The rupiah ended weaker Monday as banks longed the U.S. dollar after a bomb blast over the weekend in a central Jakarta shopping mall.

The bomb was the latest in a string of explosions to rock the capital and comes amid pressure from the U.S. to tighten security in the country.

Indonesia Muslim groups have threatened to target U.S. interests in Indonesia if Washington takes retaliatory action against Afghanistan in connection with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Fears over possible unrest pushed the dollar to an intraday high of Rp 9,560.

But traders said the central bank intervened to sell about $30 million in the afternoon, which brought the dollar back to close Asian trading between Rp 9,480 and Rp 9,500, but still higher than Rp 9,410 to Rp 9,430 late Friday.

The central bank's policy is to intervene when necessary to stabilize the rupiah, but never to comment on specific action taken.

Local companies that have kept the dollar on an upward trend in recent weeks to meet debt payments stayed out of the market Monday waiting for the dollar to move back closer to Rp 9,400.