Rupiah Closes Weaker at Rp 17,002 per US Dollar, Pressured by Geopolitics
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – The rupiah exchange rate closed weaker in Thursday afternoon trading, falling 19 points or 0.11% to Rp 17,002 per US dollar from the previous close at Rp 16,983 per US dollar. Muhammad Amru Syifa from the Research and Development of the Indonesia Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (ICDX) stated that the rupiah’s weakening was influenced by geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East.
“The rupiah’s movement is still affected by the strengthening of the US dollar, oil price movements, and geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East region,” he said in Jakarta on Thursday.
Citing Anadolu, US President Donald Trump stated that his side would leave Iran in the next two to three weeks.
According to official US figures, 13 US military members have been killed since the war began. The conflict between the US and Israel with Iran is also driving up energy prices and affecting shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global route for oil shipping, with the majority of those commodity shipments passing through the strait.
“President Donald Trump’s statement adds further pressure on the market. Uncertainty regarding the end of the conflict and the potential for escalation keeps market participants cautious. This condition drives the strengthening of the US dollar and the rise in oil prices, which ultimately pressures emerging market currencies, including the rupiah,” Amru explained.
Market attention is also focused on the release of US economic data, particularly employment data, as well as the direction of the Federal Reserve’s (The Fed) interest rate policy.
On the domestic side, Indonesia’s inflation decline to an annual level of 3.48% is seen as reflecting easing price pressures and serving as a factor supporting stability. “Bank Indonesia’s steps through instruments such as SVBI and SUVBI also help maintain foreign exchange liquidity, although their short-term impact is still less dominant compared to external factors,” he said.
The Jakarta Interbank Spot Dollar Rate (JISDOR) from Bank Indonesia today also moved weaker to Rp 17,015 per US dollar from the previous Rp 17,002 per US dollar.