Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian rupiah closed lower at Rp13,713 per dollar in the Jakarta interbank market on Monday evening, down 90 points from the earlier close of Rp13,623 per dollar.

"The US dollar closed stronger amid high expectation of the Fed fund rate hike, leaving the rupiah and the currencies of other developing nations corrected," economist Rangga Cipta of Samuel Sekuritas said here on Monday.

He said the rupiah has the chance to follow the global trend. As a result, it has some room to weaken against the US dollar, particularly due to external sentiments such as the looming Fed fund rate hike which may prompt capital flight.

"Although sentiments will come and go, the expectation of the Fed Fund rate hike still opens a chance for the rupiah to weaken," he said.

Meanwhile, Ariston Tjendra, chief researcher of Monex Investindo Futures, said the European Central Bank (ECB)s policy still influences the money market movement.

The ECB policy, which runs counter to the Federal Reserves policy, has put pressure on risky currencies, he said.

"The expectation of the Fed Fund Rate hike in December remains unchanged. The US policy makers are becoming more serious about raising the benchmark rate next December," he said.

After all, the US dollars appreciation will be limited as investors are still pessimistic about aggressive increase in the Fed Fund Rate.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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