Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga: BI Rate Increased to Maintain Economic Stability

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said the increase in the Bank Indonesia reference interest rate (BI Rate) was carried out to maintain economic stability and send a strong signal to the market amid global turmoil.

He said the market's response to the 25 basis point increase in the BI-Rate had shown positive results.

"BI Rate is rising because it prioritizes stability. So with BI-Rate rising, it looks like the response from the JCI is also good, it is in the green zone. Then the second, the rupiah also strengthened a little," said Airlangga as quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, June 9.

The rupiah exchange rate at the close of trading on Tuesday strengthened 130 points or 0.71 percent to Rp18,058 per US dollar from the previous Rp18,188 per US dollar.

The Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX) Composite Stock Price Index (IHSG) on Tuesday afternoon also closed up 404.51 points or 7.57 percent to 5,746.65.

Previously, Bank Indonesia raised the BI Rate by 25 basis points to 5.50 percent to strengthen the stabilization of the rupiah exchange rate and keep inflation under control.

BI said the weakening of the rupiah exchange rate had exceeded the central bank's projection, so that further policy steps were needed to strengthen the stability of the rupiah.

According to Airlangga, the market views the policy as a responsive step in facing the current global turmoil and situation.

"The market sees Indonesia as responsive to the current turmoil or situation," he said.

He said the government would continue to prioritize the stabilization of the national economy because Indonesia's economic fundamentals were still strong.

According to him, this condition is supported by export performance, macroeconomic conditions, and positive views of partner countries on the Indonesian economy.

"The economy is indeed strong in essence, both in terms of exports, in terms of macro," he said.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) previously reported that Indonesia's economy in the first quarter of 2026 grew 5.61 percent year on year (yoy).

The Coordinating Minister also said that Singapore appreciated a number of Indonesian economic policies that were considered oriented towards national interests, including the one-door export policy.

"Singapore said Indonesia's fundamentals are strong. Singapore also appreciates the policies taken by Indonesia, especially for national interests, including with one-door exports, they encourage the implementation of these policies," he said.

In addition, Airlangga said that the world is currently paying great attention to global supply chain resilience due to the war disruption in the Middle East.

He assessed that Indonesia has a strong position in the fertilizer sector because it is still able to export around 1.5 million tons of urea to countries in the region.

"Indonesia is one of the largest fertilizer factories in ASEAN," he said.