Jakarta. Indonesia stocks slipped into the red on Thursday, as foreign investors remained net sellers and concerns grew over potential fund outflows after BlackRock signaled an underweight stance on Indonesia in its upcoming Southeast Asia fund.

Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) fell 31 points, or 0.43%, to 7,153 in early trade, moving within a range of 7,131 to 7,161.

In the opening minutes, trading volume reached 2.1 billion shares with turnover of Rp 1.17 trillion ($69 million) across 141,000 transactions. Decliners outnumbered gainers, with 276 stocks falling against 220 advancing, while 183 were unchanged.

Global sentiment has shifted from escalation toward de-escalation after the United States signaled that its primary objectives regarding Iran had been achieved, opening the possibility of ending military operations within two to three weeks without a formal agreement. Iran has also indicated readiness to end the conflict if security guarantees are met.

However, uncertainty remains elevated due to inconsistent US policy signals, particularly on the status of the Strait of Hormuz, potential further military action, and the role of allies. Markets are now closely watching President Donald Trump’s next statement as a key directional trigger.

Kiwoom Sekuritas Indonesia said improving sentiment indicators suggest limited long-term economic damage.

“Sentiment surveys and PMI indicators show optimism that the economic impact is only temporary. Investors appear aggressive in ‘buy on dip’ actions, although the impact on real economic activity such as production and trade is not yet fully reflected,” the brokerage wrote.

Domestically, despite the JCI closing higher in the previous session, foreign investors recorded net selling of Rp 165.5 billion across all markets, concentrated in large-cap banking stocks such as BMRI, BBRI, and BBNI.

Kiwoom also flagged a potential shift in regional fund flows as BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager with over $10 trillion in assets under management, prepares to launch a Southeast Asia-focused quantitative fund with a minimum size of SGD 500 million.

The fund, which tracks the MSCI ASEAN Index and applies value, yield, and momentum strategies, is expected to be heavily weighted toward Singapore, with more than 50% allocation, while remaining underweight on Indonesia.

“The implication is that global fund flows could potentially become more concentrated in Singapore, while Indonesia risks remaining underweight in the short term,” Kiwoom said.

On the macro front, data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) showed Indonesia’s February trade surplus came in at $1.28 billion, below market expectations of $1.55 billion. Export growth slowed to 1.01% year-on-year, while imports surged 10.85%, indicating resilient domestic demand amid weakening external conditions.

Meanwhile, inflation cooled sharply in March, with annual CPI at 3.48% from 4.76% previously, while monthly inflation stood at 0.41%, both below expectations. Core inflation also eased to 2.52%, driven by normalizing food and clothing prices and base effects in housing and utilities, despite modest increases in transportation and services.

Overnight on Wall Street, equities extended gains. The S&P 500 rose 0.7%, building on its strongest rally since last spring a day earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 224 points, or 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.2%.

Oil prices also retreated toward $100 per barrel after Trump said the US military offensive could conclude within two to three weeks.

In Asia on Thursday morning, markets turned lower. Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.4%, South Korea’s Kospi dropped 2.79%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.91%, and China’s Shanghai Composite slipped 0.08%.

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