The Indonesian rupiah traded around IDR 18,130 per U.S. dollar on Wednesday, hovering near that level since last week and still struggling to firm toward the 18,000 mark, even as the U.S. dollar index slipped to a five-week low. The greenback weakened as investors tracked incoming U.S. midterm election results, with early indications suggesting a potentially strong showing by Democrats.
Sentiment toward the rupiah remained pressured by domestic factors. Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara cut the 2026 growth forecast to 5.4%–5.5% from 5.6%–6% ahead of the release of Q3 GDP data on Thursday, with year-on-year growth expected to decelerate further from 5.29% in Q2. At the same time, higher oil prices, rising imports, and volatile export revenues have intensified fiscal and external pressures.
On the policy front, Bank Indonesia said its currency intervention measures have been effective. Governor Destry reiterated the central bank’s commitment to an active presence in the market, signaling a greater reliance on non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) to limit the need for more expensive spot market interventions.
