Rupiah Closes 0.14% Weaker as US Dollar Rises to Rp17,850

The Rupiah ended trading on Tuesday (22/09/2026) in the red against the US Dollar. This weakening occurred as the market awaits the interest rate decision from Bank Indonesia.

According to Refinitiv data, the Ruplar closed 0.14% weaker at Rp17,850/US.Thisperformancewasanimprovementfromthemarketopening, whentheRupiahhaddepreciatedby0.20.

Following the opening, the Rupiah’s decline continued, with the US Dollar exchange rate briefly touching Rp17,896, before the Rupiah managed to trim its losses by 46 points.

Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the strength of the greenback against six major world currencies, was observed to have strengthened by 0.05% to 100.481 as of 15:00 WIB.

Rupiah trading today took place as Bank Indonesia (BI) commenced its Board of Governors Meeting (RDG) on Tuesday-Wednesday (22-23 September 2026). The benchmark interest rate decision is scheduled to be announced tomorrow.

A CNBC Indonesia poll of 11 institutions and agencies showed that eight respondents expect BI to maintain the BI Rate at 5.75%. Three other respondents projected a 25 basis point (bps) increase to 6.00%.

If BI decides to maintain the interest rate, it would mark the third consecutive hold following the BI Rate being kept at 5.75% during the July and August RDG meetings.

Juniman, an economist at Bank Maybank Indonesia, assessed that BI’s primary focus remains on financial market stability, particularly the Rupiah exchange rate. He noted that BI can continue to support economic growth through other policies while maintaining the current interest rate.

“To support domestic economic growth, BI can ease macroprudential policies and increase the effectiveness of the national payment system,” said Juniman.

Meanwhile, the Rupiah’s movement today was also influenced by US Dollar dynamics in the global market. The greenback continues to receive momentum after the US central bank (The Federal Reserve/The Fed) raised interest rates and signalled the possibility of further tightening.

According to CME FedWatch, the market is pricing in approximately a 55% probability that the Fed will raise interest rates again in October, up from around 43% a week earlier.