Airlangga said the weakening of the rupiah was triggered by global and seasonal factors.

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said that pressure on the rupiah exchange rate not only occurred in Indonesia, but was also experienced by many countries due to the strengthening of the US dollar.

He explained that the weakening of the rupiah is currently also influenced by seasonal factors, especially the increasing need for foreign exchange ahead of the hajj season.

"Regarding the rupiah, various countries are indeed experiencing a weakening against the US dollar and usually also during the hajj, demand for the dollar increases," said Airlangga after a press conference, Tuesday, May 5.

"The government will continue to monitor the dynamics of the dollar demand, considering that the surge in foreign exchange demand in this period is a pattern that occurs every year," he continued.

According to Airlangga, the need for dollars is also likely to increase in the second quarter due to dividend payments.

"So later we will also monitor these needs and usually in the second quarter there is also a dividend payment. So the demand for the US dollar is high," he said.

He said that to maintain the stability of the rupiah exchange rate, the government together with Bank Indonesia had prepared various anticipatory steps, including strengthening international cooperation through a currency exchange scheme (currency swap) with a number of countries such as China, Japan, and Korea.

"We will continue to monitor how other countries are doing, but we have prepared with Bank Indonesia regarding currency swaps with China and then with various other countries including Japan, Korea and others," he explained.

In addition, Airlangga said the government was also studying the diversification of debt financing and the issuance of securities in currencies other than the US dollar, such as the yuan and yen, to reduce dependence on the US dollar.

"So hopefully in the future we will also continue to prepare the composition related to the level of debt that we can, the securities that we can find that are like from China or from Yen to maintain pressure on the US dollar," he concluded.