US Dollar Hits Rp17,830, Bank Indonesia Speaks Out and Reveals the Culprits
The exchange rate of the Rupiah against the US Dollar weakened in today’s trading, prompting Bank Indonesia (BI) to issue a statement.
According to Refinitiv data, as of 13:0 thick WIB, the Garuda currency had depreciated to the position of Rp17,830/US$, representing a decline of 0.56%.
Erwin Gunawan Hutapea, Head of the Monetary Management and Securities Assets Department at BI, stated that the pressure on the Rupiah exchange rate is at least influenced by external factors.
“The weakening of the Rupiah exchange rate is still influenced by concerns regarding geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which are driving oil prices to remain high above USD 100 per barrel,” Erwin said in a written statement on Monday (21/09/2026).
Although the triggers are external, he noted that financial market participants view these issues as having domestic implications, ranging from increased global inflation risks to pressure on the fiscal outlook.
“Exchange rate pressure is also driven by the foreign exchange needs of importers as well as capital outflows from domestic asset portfolios,” Erwin added.
Amidst this situation, Erwin ensured that Bank Indonesia will continue to be present in the market to ensure that market mechanisms function properly and that the stability of the Rupiah exchange rate is maintained in accordance with its fundamentals.
BI stated that it will manage the interest rate structure in the money market by strengthening pro-market monetary operation strategies, as well as enhancing the effectiveness of exchange rate stabilisation and liquidity adequacy through underlying transactions for hedging swaps with incentives.
Furthermore, intervention will continue to be carried out consistently and sustainably through Non-Deliverable Forward (NDF) transactions in the offshore market, spot transactions, and Domestic Non-Deliverable Forward (DNDF) in the domestic market, accompanied by the purchase of Government Securities (SBN) in the secondary market.
Coordination and communication with corporations and market participants will also continue intensively, including to encourage foreign capital inflows by optimising provided incentives, and to diversify foreign exchange demand through the Local Currency Transaction (LCT) scheme.
“In general, the movement of the Rupiah is still in line with regional currency movements, with a quarter-to-date (QTD) appreciation of 0.37%. The foreign exchange reserve position also increased to the level of USD 146.5 billion at the end of August 2026,” Erwin emphasised.