exellent crabdouble-skinned crabsgood crabVietnamese crab exporter

Rupiah Under Pressure as Indonesia Market Outlook Weighs on Sentiment

Indah Handayani
January 29, 2026 | 4:36 pm
SHARE
An employee shows rupiah and US dollar bills at Bank Syariah Indonesia, South Tangerang, Banten, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (Antara Photo/Hafidz Mubarak A/wsj)
An employee shows rupiah and US dollar bills at Bank Syariah Indonesia, South Tangerang, Banten, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (Antara Photo/Hafidz Mubarak A/wsj)

Jakarta. Rupiah closed weaker against the US dollar on Thursday, sliding despite a softer greenback, as domestic concerns overshadowed relatively limited external pressures.

Bloomberg spot exchange data showed the rupiah fell 33 points, or 0.2%, to Rp 16,755 per dollar. In contrast, the US dollar index slipped 0.27% to 96.18.

The currency had strengthened a day earlier, gaining 46 points to close at Rp 16,722 on Wednesday.

Ibrahim Assuaibi, director at Traze Andalan Futures, said the rupiah’s decline was largely driven by negative domestic sentiment, particularly investor unease over the outlook for Indonesia’s financial markets.

ADVERTISEMENT

“One of the main factors is market concern following Goldman Sachs Group Inc’s decision to downgrade Indonesian equities to underweight,” Ibrahim wrote in a research note on Thursday.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc has warned that concerns raised by MSCI Inc over Indonesia’s investment eligibility could trigger sizable foreign outflows. In a worst-case scenario, if Indonesia were reclassified from an emerging market to a frontier market, passive funds tracking MSCI indices could offload assets worth up to $7.8 billion.

Additional outflows of around $5.6 billion could also materialize should FTSE Russell review its methodology and reassess Indonesia’s free-float status, Ibrahim said.

“The combination of market pressure and liquidity downgrade risks could force portfolio adjustments by long-only investors, while also encouraging speculative flows from hedge funds,” he added.

Pressure on domestic assets intensified after Indonesian stocks plunged 7.4% on Wednesday, following MSCI’s announcement to delay index changes while awaiting regulators’ resolution of concerns over highly concentrated share ownership at several listed firms.

“Low free float levels in the market have become a key concern for global investors,” Ibrahim said.

From the global front, market sentiment was also clouded by geopolitical tensions, after US President Donald Trump was reported to be considering further military action against Iran. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.50%–3.75%, reiterating that future policy moves would remain data-dependent.

Ibrahim noted that the rupiah had weakened by as much as 85 points during Thursday’s session before paring losses into the close. For Friday’s trade, he expects the currency to move sideways with a weakening bias in the range of Rp 16,750 to Rp 16,780 per dollar.

Tags: Keywords:
SHARE

Related Articles


Business Jun 19, 2026 | 4:25 pm

Rupiah Slips to Rp 17,801 as Fed Signals, MSCI Concerns Weigh

Rupiah weakened to Rp 17,801 per US dollar as hawkish Fed signals and MSCI concerns weighed on sentiment.
Business Jun 19, 2026 | 10:48 am

Stronger Dollar Pushes Rupiah Back Into Rp 17,800 Territory

Rupiah fell to Rp 17,848 per dollar as the greenback hit a one-year high on expectations of further Fed tightening.
Business Jun 18, 2026 | 4:33 pm

Rupiah Weakens Furher against US Dollar Despite Latest BI Rate Hike

Rupiah weakened to Rp 17,794 per US dollar despite BI's rate hike as investors awaited MSCI's review outcome.
Business Jun 18, 2026 | 9:39 am

Rupiah Slides to Rp 17,858 as Fed Rate Outlook Lifts Dollar

Rupiah fell 0.54% to Rp 17,858 per US dollar as investors favored the greenback after the Fed held rates steady.
Business Jun 17, 2026 | 3:29 pm

Rupiah Dips on Fed Jitters, BI Hold Seen This Week

Rupiah weakened to Rp 17,748 per US dollar as investors awaited the Fed's rate decision and signals on future cuts.
Business Jun 17, 2026 | 9:52 am

Rupiah Slips as Markets Await Fed's First Rate Decision Under Warsh

Rupiah weakened to Rp 17,736 per US dollar as investors awaited the Fed's first policy decision under Kevin Warsh.
Business Jun 15, 2026 | 6:05 pm

Rupiah Posts Sharpest Gain in Weeks as Middle East Risks Ease

Rupiah strengthened 151 points to Rp 17,708 per US dollar as easing US-Iran tensions boosted market sentiment.
Lifestyle Jun 15, 2026 | 4:24 pm

Stronger Ringgit, Singapore Dollar Drive Tourist Spending in Batam

Batam sees a surge in Malaysian and Singaporean tourists as stronger currencies boost shopping and SME sales.
Business Jun 11, 2026 | 5:19 pm

Rupiah Nears Rp 18,000 as OECD Deficit Warning, Iran Tensions Rattle Markets

Rupiah weakened to Rp 17,988 per dollar as OECD deficit concerns, Iran's Hormuz blockade, and US inflation hit sentiment.
Business Jun 10, 2026 | 2:08 pm

Airlines Tighten Seatbelts Amid Rupiah Turbulences

About 70% of an airline operational costs are paid in the greenback, setting a major obstacle amid a weakening rupiah.

The Latest


News 10 hours ago

Ayase Ueda Scores Twice in Japan’s 4-0 Win Against Tunisia 

Japan’s four goals were the most the Samurai Blue had ever scored in a World Cup game.
News 13 hours ago

Jakarta Completes Rasuna Said Revamp, Removes 109 Derelict Pillars

Jakarta has completed the transformation of Rasuna Said, removing 109 abandoned monorail pillars and upgrading public spaces.
News 14 hours ago

Curacao Earns First-Ever World Cup Point after Goalless Draw with Ecuador

Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room made 15 saves against a relentless Ecuador attack, allowing The Blue Wave to earn a 0-0 draw.
News 16 hours ago

Germany Beats Ivory Coast 2-1 to Advance to World Cup Knockout Phase

Four-time champion Germany has come back from disappointing group stage exits in 2018 and 2022.
News 16 hours ago

Netherlands Routs Sweden 5-1 to Lead Group F

Sweden coach Graham Potter said the defeat was less about what his team did and more about just how good Netherlands played Saturday.
COPYRIGHT © 2026 JAKARTA GLOBE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED