Rupiah Strengthens to Rp 18,058 per US Dollar After BI Rate Hike

The Indonesian rupiah rebounded against the US dollar after Bank Indonesia (BI) unexpectedly raised its benchmark interest rate, the BI Rate, by 25 basis points to 5.5%. Quoting Bloomberg, the rupiah strengthened by 129.5 points, or 0.71%, to a position of Rp 18,058 per US dollar at the close of trade on Tuesday (9/6/2026). In the previous trading session, the rupiah stood at Rp 18,187 per US dollar.

Currency and commodities observer Ibrahim Assuaibi attributed the strengthening to BI’s internal move. The rate increase was a follow-up step to strengthen exchange rate stabilisation against the impact of high global volatility stemming from the Middle East conflict, and served as a pre-emptive measure to ensure inflation in 2026 and 2027 remains within the government’s target range of 2.5±1%.

BI has stated the need for further measures to bolster rupiah stabilisation by raising yields and offering other incentives to encourage foreign capital inflows. This stance was taken amid a decline in Indonesia’s foreign exchange reserves. BI recorded that by May 2026, reserves had reached $144.9 billion, down by $1.3 billion from the previous month’s $146.2 billion. The decline was dominated by government external debt repayment obligations, global bond issuances, and tax transactions. This reserve position is the lowest since July 2024.

Ibrahim explained that the government is continuously strengthening economic policy synergy from both the monetary and fiscal sides. Coordination between BI and the Ministry of Finance has been ongoing since the end of last week as part of efforts to keep the national economy on the expected track. The government has also signalled it is preparing a new economic stimulus package to protect public purchasing power amidst the pressure on the rupiah exchange rate, which had touched Rp 18,200 per US dollar, and its impact on the national economy. Besides the stimulus, the government will discuss the development of the Indonesia Financial Centre (IFC) project, which has recently drawn attention as an instrument for strengthening the national financial sector.