Rupiah rallies to new high

Improved sentiment: Investors are seeing signs that the rupiah has stabilised and won’t decline significantly. — Reuters

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s rupiah surged the most since July 2014 and stocks headed toward the highest close in a more than a month amid signs investors are returning to the nation’s assets.

The rupiah jumped 1.3% to 14,305 a dollar as of 10.47am in Jakarta yesterday after rising as much as 2.2% earlier, prices from local banks show. The currency has strengthened 2.3% this week, paring its loss this year to 13%. The Jakarta Composite Index of shares advanced 2.2%, following a 3.2% gain on Monday.