Rupiah gains further on Boediono euphoria
Rupiah gains further on Boediono euphoria
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The rupiah gained ground on the U.S. dollar for the fifth
consecutive trading day, with a continued market euphoria over
the Cabinet's new economic team propelling the currency on
Thursday to its strongest level in the past four months.
The rupiah closed at Rp 9,780 per dollar on Thursday, from its
Rp 9,825 trading level on Wednesday, when the new economic team
-- which included the widely respected former finance minister
Boediono as the new chief economics minister -- was sworn in.
This is the rupiah's strongest position against the American
greenback since early August, before it then slumped to a four-
year low later that month -- brushing up against Rp 11,000 a
dollar -- as a continued rapid rise in global oil prices dented
confidence towards the state budget's fiscal sustainability.
The stock market also gained from the upbeat expectation that
Boediono would be able to lead the economic team in tackling the
rising inflation, with the Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index
ending up 0.6 percent higher at 1,158.319 points.
Coordinating Minister for the Economy Boediono has brought
positive sentiment to the financial markets, having boasted a
proven track record of achieving and retaining macroeconomic
stability through prudent budgetary policies as the former
finance minister during the previous administration of Megawati
Soekarnoputri.
The rupiah actually has been gaining since Friday, when
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono merely mentioned that Boediono
could be asked to join the Cabinet to help tackle the current
macroeconomic problems, in particular rising inflation.
The currency broke past the Rp 10,000 level to Rp 9,955 on
Dec. 5 when the Cabinet reshuffle was to be announced, and
further to Rp 9,920 after the announcement affirmed Boediono's
ministerial post.
The only thing now that could thwart the rupiah's current
advance, dealers said, was either profit-taking or another rise
in global oil prices.
Immediately after being sworn in as chief economics minister,
Boediono said that a stable rate was indeed crucial in efforts to
contain the recent rise in inflation and, that he would work
closely with the central bank to achieve that.