Indonesia central bank: U.S. rates may rise further; stance on local rates stays

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo said on Thursday the Federal Reserve may continue raising U.S. interest rates until June, but while the monetary tightening would strengthen the dollar his central bank’s stance remains unchanged.

In a pre-recorded video at a media launch, Warjiyo reiterated that Indonesia’s rate hikes, totalling 225 basis points between August and January, were sufficient to guide inflation back to within target in the second half of this year.

He stressed that the central bank’s commitment was to maintain rupiah exchange rate stability and that the currency could strengthen after the U.S. benchmark rate has reached its peak.

(Reporting by Gayatri Suroyo and Stefanno Sulaiman; Editing by Ed Davies)