Rupiah strengthened slightly on Friday, extending gains despite lingering external pressures and cautious signals from the United States Federal Reserve.

The local currency closed up 6 points against the US dollar at Rp 16,888 in afternoon trade, compared with the previous close of Rp 16,894. Earlier in the session, the rupiah had advanced as much as 25 points before trimming gains.

Ibrahim Assuaibi, Director of Traze Andalan Futures, said the rupiah appreciated shortly after news broke of the signing of a reciprocal trade tariff agreement between Indonesia and the United States.

The currency firmed even as global sentiment remained challenging. Minutes from the January 2026 meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee showed Federal Reserve officials adopting a cautious yet relatively hawkish tone.

The minutes reinforced the view that a near-term interest rate cut is unlikely. This kept the US dollar and US Treasury yields steady, putting pressure on non-yielding assets such as precious metals, Ibrahim said in a written statement on Friday.

Optimistic US economic data also supported the greenback. Initial jobless claims fell to 206,000 in the week ended February 14, 2026, well below market expectations of 225,000 and down from the previous 229,000.

The rupiah strengthened despite elevated geopolitical risks linked to ongoing US-Iran tensions. US President Donald Trump said Iran has between 10 and 15 days to reach an agreement regarding its nuclear program.

Ibrahim added that markets are closely watching the advance reading of US fourth-quarter gross domestic product, Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) data, and the S&P Global Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), all scheduled for release later on Friday.

Source : jakartaglobe.id

Feb 21th, 2026