Bank Indonesia Maintains 6 Percent Benchmark BI Rate, Rupiah Closes Stronger
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21 February 2024 17:35 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo said BI maintained the benchmark interest rate, aka the BI rate, at around 6 percent.
"The Bank Indonesia Board of Governors Meeting on February 20 and 21, 2024, decided to maintain the BI rate at 6 percent," Perry said in a press conference monitored online on Wednesday, February 21, 2024. He said, the deposit facility rate was maintained at 5.25 percent, and lending facility rate also remained at 6.75 percent.
Perry explained that the decision was based on a comprehensive assessment and projection of the global economy, domestic economy, monetary conditions, financial system, and payment system. "The decision to maintain the BI rate at 6 percent remains consistent with the focus of pro-stability monetary policy," he said.
Perry said that this monetary policy focuses on strengthening rupiah exchange rate stabilization, as well as pre-emptive and forward-looking steps to ensure inflation remains under control within the target of 2.5±1 percent in 2024.
Rupiah strengthening
The rupiah exchange rate against the US dollar on Wednesday closed stronger as Bank Indonesia (BI) kept its benchmark interest rate or BI-Rate at 6 percent, Antara reported.
At the end of Wednesday's trading, the rupiah rose 25 points or 0.16 percent to Rp15,635 per US dollar from Rp15,660 per US dollar previously.
Currency analyst Lukman Leong told Antara in Jakarta that the current BI-Rate aligns with the Indonesian government's inflation control efforts. However, he said, “if the Fed cuts interest rates in the future, BI can follow suit even though it is not one-to-one."
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Bank Indonesia's Jakarta Interbank Spot Dollar Rate (JISDOR) increased to IDR15,658 per US dollar from IDR15,659 per US dollar.
AMELIA RAHIMA SARI | ANTARA
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