JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia’s central bank said the rupiah’s fall against U.S. dollar was still under control, after the currency slid to its weakest level in more than six months on Thursday following a surprise cut in interest rates the day before.
“The market reaction that occurred this morning is still under control and short term in nature because market participants are still digesting BI’s decision yesterday,” Edi Susianto, Bank Indonesia’s head of monetary management, told Reuters.
He said the central bank would ensure the supply and demand of foreign exchange in the market.
BI surprised investors on Wednesday when it cut its key benchmark policy rate by 25 bps to 5.75%, saying the decision was taken to support economic growth.
The rupiah was down as much as 0.4% to 16,383 per dollar on Thursday morning. The currency weakened even as other Asian currencies, such as the yen, the Malaysian ringgit and Indian rupee, strengthened against the dollar.
(Reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman; Editing by John Mair)
