Rupiah Continues to Plunge, Purbaya: Not Difficult to Fix

JAKARTA - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa is confident that improving the rupiah’s exchange rate against the US dollar, which is currently plummeting, is not difficult as long as Indonesia’s economic fundamentals remain strong. However, Purbaya reminded that handling the rupiah’s exchange rate is the responsibility of Bank Indonesia, not the Ministry of Finance. “I think it’s like this: with good economic fundamentals, it’s not too difficult to improve the exchange rate,” Purbaya said at the Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday (5/5/2026). “But that’s not my job; it’s the central bank’s job. The central bank will explain how to fix it,” he added. The rupiah fell 30 points or 0.17 percent to the level of Rp17,424 per US dollar. Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto stated that pressure on the rupiah’s exchange rate is not only occurring in Indonesia but is also being experienced by many countries in line with the strengthening of the US dollar. “Regarding the rupiah, various countries are indeed experiencing weakening against the US dollar, and usually during the Hajj pilgrimage, demand for dollars increases,” Airlangga said after the press conference on First Quarter 2026 GDP Growth at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs on Tuesday.