BI Urges SOEs to Help Curb Rupiah Volatility
30 October 2014 14:48 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bank Indonesia expects all state-owned enterprises to immediately use the standard operational procedures to hedge foreign debt. By doing so, the central bank can be certain that the rupiah volatility against the US dollar could subside.
"Hopefully, each SOE can start making their own SOPs in accordance with the needs of their debt," BI's executive director for communications, Tirta Segara, told Tempo on Tuesday.
The rupiah is currently at around Rp12,000 per US dollar, a year-on-year correction from Rp11,000 per US dollar, and higher than the macro assumptions in the 2014 Revised State Budget, where the rate is pegged at Rp11,600 per US dollar. The correction was triggered by, among others, corporates' soaring foreign debt.
In September, the central bank released the Hedging SOP for SOEs and other national institutions. The SOP is expected to be a reference for related parties in implementing and monitoring their hedging activities.
In March, former SOE Minister Dahlan Iskan ordered all 139 SOEs to hedge the exchange rate. So far, only PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk has done so.
MAYA NAWANGWULAN | GANGSAR PARIKESIT | R.R. ARIYANI
