Jakarta. Rupiah weakened against the US dollar on Monday afternoon as global investors digested fresh dovish signals from the Federal Reserve and awaited key US economic data later this week.

The currency closed down 21 points at Rp 16,667 per dollar, after briefly sliding as much as 25 points from Friday’s close of Rp 16,647.

Ibrahim Assuaibi, director at Traze Andalan Futures, said the pressure followed last week’s Fed rate cut and its signal that it would soon begin purchasing short-term US government bonds starting December, with a monthly pace of $40 billion.

According to Ibrahim, the Fed’s asset-buying plan reinforced expectations of a more accommodative monetary stance, especially as global liquidity conditions were seen loosening further due to fresh cash injections.

The rupiah also faced headwinds as markets turned cautious ahead of US non-farm payrolls and November consumer price index data, scheduled for release on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.

Ibrahim noted that investors were closely watching for clearer signs of easing labor market growth and cooling inflation, both of which remained critical factors in determining the Fed’s next policy move.

Ibrahim added that the upcoming figures would be among the first major US data releases following the recent government shutdown, which had disrupted several key economic indicators for October.

Additional pressure came from lingering geopolitical tensions in Eastern Europe, as Russia and Ukraine continued peace negotiations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy recently offered to halt his country’s NATO aspirations during five-hour talks with a US envoy in Berlin, though uncertainty over the outcome kept risk sentiment fragile.

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