Rupiah Breaches Rp 17,100, BI Pulls All-Nighters to Safeguard Currency Stability

Bank Indonesia (BI) is intensifying stabilisation of the rupiah exchange rate by monitoring the market for 24 hours. This step is taken in response to the unpredictable dynamics of the Middle East conflict.

BI Senior Deputy Governor Destry Damayanti stated that monitoring is conducted through BI representative offices in London, England, and New York, United States (US). The monitoring follows global trading hours, from Asia to Europe and the US.

“So BI is now open 24 hours. So in Singapore we open for 1 hour, in Hong Kong we’re already open too. Then we close at 3, Europe is still running. Then colleagues rest a bit, then at 9 in America, which is around 8 or 9 PM for us, America opens. So we stay awake,” she said at the Central Banking Forum 2026 in Jakarta on Monday (13/4/2026).

BI data records that since the Middle East conflict at the end of February 2026, the rupiah has weakened by 1.91%. Year-to-date, the weakening reaches 2.39%.

Midday trading showed the rupiah at the level of Rp 17,130 per US dollar. This value weakened by 26 points or 0.15% compared to the previous close.

Destry explained that the pressure is not only occurring in Indonesia. Several developing countries such as South Korea, Thailand, and the Philippines are experiencing similar conditions.

An increase in global risk premiums is driving investors to withdraw funds from emerging markets.

“So the exchange rate movement, we’re not alone. Several countries are experiencing the same because they are also facing significant outflows, including a substantial increase in risk premiums,” she said.

“We will also expand the base of participants later for NDF outside. Because sometimes like today, the rupiah is still safe, suddenly our NDF shoots up directly above Rp 17,100. That’s NDF, no real transaction yet. So if we can’t intervene there, in the morning we already see our spot directly shoots up there,” she revealed.