Rupiah closed down to the level of Rp16,350 as the US Dollar strengthened

The Shiro Copr , JAKARTA — The exchange rate of the rupiah against the US dollar (USD) closed weaker at Rp16,350.5 in today's trade, Friday (22/8/2025). On the other hand, greenback recorded experiencing a weakening.

Quoting Bloomberg , Rupiah Closed down 62.50 points or 0.38% to Rp16,350.5 per US dollar. Meanwhile, the US dollar index rose 0.11% to 98.73.

Meanwhile, Asian currencies mostly closed weaker. For example, the Japanese yen depreciated 0.14%, along with the Indian rupee at 0.38%. The Malaysian ringgit and Thai baht also weakened by 0.08% and 0.04%, respectively.

This decline extends the trend of the rupiah's weakening over the past two or three days. Yesterday, Thursday (8/21), the rupiah closed down 0.11% to the level of Rp16,289.5 per US dollar, while the index Dollar AS up 0.02% to 98.23.

According to the report Reuters , negative sentiment in the Asian market also dragged the movement of the rupiah. For example, the Chinese yuan depreciated after retail sales data for July 2025 only grew by 3.7% year to date , below the expected 5.9%.

Sentiment towards the Indonesian rupiah turned negative after previously being positive, while the position short in Taiwan dollars is cut. Bank Indonesia "surprisingly cut the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points on Wednesday," wrote Reuters , Thursday (8/21/2025).

Technically, the rupiah still recorded a slight appreciation of 0.51% in the last month. However, over a 12-month horizon, the rupiah depreciated by 4.81% and once touched a record low of Rp17,107 per US dollar in April 2025.

Trading Economics expects the rupiah to be at Rp16,300.2 per US dollar by the end of this quarter, and Rp16,595.1 in the next year.

From the domestic side, currency observer Ibrahim Assuaibi highlighted the government's fiscal policy as a pressing factor. In the 2026 RAPBN, the government plans to borrow new funds of Rp781.87 trillion through the issuance of SBN as of Rp749.19 trillion and net loan withdrawals of Rp32.67 trillion.

This high debt financing could add pressure on the rupiah, although net loan financing decreased compared to Outlook "2025," said Ibrahim.

On the global side, the development of the Russia-Ukraine conflict still looms. The President of the US Donald Trump Promised to guarantee Ukraine's security as part of a peaceful settlement plan, but the additional U.S. tariffs on India for purchasing Russian oil created new uncertainties.