Bank Indonesia Governor Destry Damayanti briefed President Prabowo Subianto on Monday, 19 October 2026, in a limited meeting at the Merdeka Palace on inflation and the rupiah exchange rate. She said BI had been able to keep the rupiah stable over the past two days. Our focus is maintaining rupiah stability, both in relation to inflation and the exchange rate, she said.
Intervention and inflows
Damayanti said BI uses spot, NDF and DNDF intervention, along with hedging cost incentives it has offered since late July. According to her, these measures have brought inflows from FX swap and DNDF transactions worth roughly US$8 billion to US$9 billion. Over the same two days, the currency has eased slightly, in line with several emerging market countries.
Damayanti described global conditions as still volatile. She said the United States faces higher-for-longer conditions and inflation well above target. The Federal Reserve Funds Rate is expected to rise, but the chance of a move in October is now smaller, which she called one of the challenges for the rupiah.
Inflation outlook
Core inflation was 2.8 percent in September, while volatile food inflation was 5 percent. BI’s target is 2.5 percent, plus or minus 1 percentage point. Volatile food prices are to be coordinated with the Ministry of Agriculture to bring them back within the target corridor.
