Rupiah rises to 11,931 per dollar

JAKARTA. The rupiah interbank trade rate appreciated by 32 basis points to Rp 11,931 per US dollar in Wednesday's final trading session.

"Some external factors have helped strengthen the rupiah," Bank Himpunan Saudara analyst Rully Nova said as quoted by Antara news agency.

"The appreciation of the dollar over the past few weeks has affected some of the US' economic development targets. Thus, the condition has alleviated pressure on the rupiah."

In the domestic market, he said that there was a lack of positive sentiment as market players were in wait-and-see mode due to the government's plan to increase fuel prices.

Bank Indonesia's mid rate data showed that the domestic currency appreciated to Rp 11,976 per dollar from Rp 11,987 per dollar by 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) closed on a negative note, declining by 0.27 percent to finish at 5,174.01.

Shares of blue-chip firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) dropped by 0.56 percent to 878.71.

IDX data showed that the volume of trade in Wednesday’s closing session involved 3.65 billion shares worth Rp 3.41 trillion (US$ 285.23 million).