Indonesian rupiah slide ties central bank's hands

Bank Indonesia stands pat despite economy needing help to recover from COVID-slump

The rupiah has weakened 3.5% against the U.S. dollar since the end of 2020, making it the second worst performing currency among the first five members of ASEAN. © Reuters

SHOTARO TANI, Nikkei staff writer

April 20, 2021 16:31 JST

Updated on April 20, 2021 17:29 JST

TOKYO -- Indonesia's central bank has its hands tied by a slide in the rupiah.

Bank Indonesia on Tuesday kept its benchmark policy rate on hold for the second straight monetary policy meeting. The central bank's seven-day reverse repo rate of 3.5% is its lowest since at least 2016 when it began using the rate as its benchmark.