Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Indonesia’s central bank, Bank Indonesia, has stated that the country’s foreign exchange (forex) reserves remained high at 136.4 billion U.S. dollars as of end of May 2021, despite declining from 138.8 billion dollars as of end of April 2021.

The position of the foreign exchange reserves was equivalent to financing 9.5 months of imports or 9.1 months of imports and servicing government’s external debt, and above the international adequacy standard of three months of imports, head of Bank Indonesia’s communication department Erwin Haryno said here on Tuesday.

The position of the foreign exchange reserves was able to support the external sector resilience and maintain macroeconomic and financial system stability, Erwin said in a written statement.

He added that the decline in the foreign exchange reserves in May 2021 was influenced, amongst others, by the government’s external debt payment.

According to him, Bank Indonesia views that the foreign exchange reserves would remain sufficient in the future as they are supported by maintained economic stability and prospects.

Reporting by Indonesia Window