TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The rupiah recorded a 27-point gain at the Jakarta interbank spot transaction today, April 5. As of this morning, the rupiah was being traded for Rp13,304 per US dollar.
"The rupiah appreciated, pushed by global waves as commodity [prices] improve," Samuel Sekuritas economist Rangga Cipta said.
Increasing commodity prices in the last week, he said, boosted the prospects for domestic economic growth, thus creating room for the rupiah to strengthen against the greenback.
The West Texas Intermediate Crude this morning gained 0.57 percent to sell for US$51.32 a barrel, while the Brent Crude rose 0.42 percent to US$54.40 a barrel.
Additionally, the rupiah is supported by a controlled March's inflation and the strong capital inflows to financial markets, he said.
Rangga predicts to rupiah to still have potentials for higher gains if the Federal Open Market Committee's meeting minutes—scheduled for release this week—are not too hawkish.
Meanwhile, Binaartha Sekuritas analyst Reza Pryambada said that positive domestic news such as the plan to focus government spending on infrastructure projects also raised the market's trust on the national economy.
ANTARA