Indonesia's forex reserves soar to $130.5b in May

The Indonesian central bank's foreign exchange reserves (forex) drifted up further in May as relatively stable rupiah led the lender to carry out less intervention in the financial market amid huge capital inflows.

The foreign exchange reserves of the Bank Indonesia, the central bank of the country, settled at 130.5 billion US dollars in May, or higher than 127.9 billion dollars in April, Bank Indonesia's spokesman Onny Widjanarko said on Monday.

He said that the lender's forex reserves in March touched $121.0 billion, reports Xinhua.

Also contributing to the hike of the reserves in May are the withdrawals of the government's foreign debts and the placement of foreign currencies in the central bank, Widjanarko noted.

The spokesman pointed out that the forex reserves are sufficient to support 8.3 months of imports, and 8.0 months of imports and payment of the government short-term debts.

The figures exceed the international threshold of three months of imports, he further said.

The forex reserves are capable of supporting resilience in the external sector and maintaining macro-prudential and financial stability, Widjanarko remarked in a statement.

The weakening US dollar has fueled the flows of foreign capitals into risky assets in emerging markets.

Bank Indonesia's Governor Perry Warjiyo has confirmed the rapid flows of the capitals into the country as of late.

Indonesia has joined global strides to gradually lift restrictions which have been applied to endure the novel coronavirus pandemic, in the hope the efforts would lead to a pickup in business activities.