Indonesia: Rupiah remains under pressure following trade deficit report

• Oct 17, 2019

Rupiah and stock prices remain under pressure as a report on Indonesia’s trade deficit sent negative sentiment into the country’s financial market.

The rupiah fell for the third consecutive day to 14,168 against the US dollar on the spot market, while the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) fell slightly to 6,155 at the close of afternoon trading on Wednesday.

Indonesia suffered a trade deficit of US$160 million in September in a reversal from the trade surplus of $80 million in the previous month, partly due the decline in exports and the rise in oil and gas imports, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) reported on Tuesday.

The news of the September trade deficit added economic woes as it indicated the worsening of the country’s export performance despite the government’s serious efforts to reduce costs and improve ease of doing business in the country.

Most Southeast Asian stock markets rose on Wednesday, tracking broader Asia, as hopes of a deal to avoid a disorderly British exit from the European Union and upbeat US corporate numbers lifted sentiment, with Singapore trading at a two-week high, Reuters reported.

The Indonesian index shed early gains, and is on track to snap a three-session winning streak, helped by the telecoms and consumer sectors. Shares of Telekomunikasi Indonesia slipped 0.5 percent, while Astra International dropped 0.8 percent. (hen)

Source: https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2019/10/16/rupiah-remains-under-pressure-following-trade-deficit-report.html