Despite Shrinking 3.4 Billion Dollars In One Month, BI Ensures Foreign Exchange Reserves Stay High

JAKARTA – Bank Indonesia (BI) reported that foreign exchange reserves at the close of April 2022 reached 135.7 billion US dollars. The book is lower than March 2022 which amounted to 139.1 billion US dollars

This means that there is a depreciation of foreign exchange reserves of USD 3.4 billion in one month.

"The decline in the position of foreign exchange reserves in April 2022 was influenced, among other things, by the need for payment of government foreign debt and the anticipation of the need for foreign exchange liquidity in line with increasing economic activity," said Head of the Communications Department Erwin Haryono in an official statement on Friday, May 13.

Erwin ensured that if the foreign payment instrument sloping down, it would not have much effect on the macro economy of Indonesia, considering that the current recorded amount is still quite large.

"The position of Indonesia's foreign exchange reserves at the end of April 2022 remains high," he said.

He explained this through a comparison of the financing equivalent of 6.9 months of imports or 6.7 months of imports and the payment of the government's foreign debt.

"This is above the international adequacy standard of about 3 months of imports," he said.

Furthermore, Erwin considered that the foreign exchange reserves were able to support the resilience of the external sector as well as maintain macroeconomic and financial system stability.

"Going forward, Bank Indonesia views foreign exchange reserves as adequate, supported by stability and maintained economic prospects, along with various policy responses to promote economic recovery," he concluded.