Govt to Adjust BI Rule Mandating Rupiah Use in Ports

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The government said that the Bank Indonesia Regulation on the obligation to use rupiah in port transactions require some adjustment. Coordinating Minister for the Economy Sofyan Djalil said the central bank will have an internal discussion regarding the adjustment on BI Regulation (PBI) No. 17/3/PBI/2015 on the Mandate to Use of Rupiah in RI Territory.

The adjustment is needed to prevent distortions in its application, as well as to avoid misconceptions among the public. The regulation applies from April 1, 2015 with a transition period until June 30th. Written agreements signed before July 1, 2015 will remain valid until they come due.

To discuss the regulation, last week Vice President Jusuf Kalla had a talk with a number of ministers. Sofyan Djalil refused to provide any detail of the discussion result.

Andreas Budi Wirohardjo, deputy chairman of the Indonesian Importers Association of Central Java, said it is difficult to transact in rupiah in ports. So far, there have been no agreements between employers and port management on the financial values of terminal goods.

According to Andreas, transacting in rupiah is actually incurring losses to PT Pelindo. Meanwhile, export-import businesses remain profited as their financial reserves are denominated in US dollar.

FAIZ NASHRILLAH | EDI FAISOL (SEMARANG)