Indonesia strengthens financial crisis protocol amid coronavirus

Few vehicles are seen on the usually busy Sudirman street as the government called on people to stay home amid the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak in Jakarta on March 31, 2020. (File/AFP)

• Southeast Asia’s largest economy is expected to grow 2.3 percent in 2020
• The rupiah will fall further to average between 17,500 to 20,000 to the dollar, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said

JAKARTA: Indonesia has improved its protocol to prevent a financial crisis amid the coronavirus outbreak, its finance minister said on Wednesday as she flagged a worst case scenario of contraction in 2020 GDP growth and the rupiah falling to a historic low.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the protocol to help failing banks has been upgraded to allow for early responses by all financial authorities as part of an emergency regulation that President Joko Widodo announced on Tuesday.

Southeast Asia’s largest economy is expected to grow 2.3 percent in 2020, but the government has prepared for a worse scenario of a contraction of 0.4 percent, Indrawati said. Her scenarios also include the rupiah falling further to average between 17,500 to 20,000 to the dollar, the weakest on record, compared to the 16,380 exchange rate at 0320 GMT on Wednesday.