"It is no longer an appropriate economic benchmark," the president told a gathering of 100 Indonesian economists here, Tuesday.
Jokowi, as the president is popularly known, noted that the relevant standard for measuring the countrys economy is currently the rupiah rate versus the currencies of its key trade partners.
"The more relevant measure is the rupiah rate against (the currencies of) our major trade partners, Japan and China," he said.
Jokowi pointed out that the United States had contributed only 10 percent to the countrys trade, compared with China (15.5 percent), Europe (11.4 percent), and Japan (10.7 percent).
Donald Trumps victory in the US presidential election has undermined the worlds currency rates. "(It is) not only the rupiah (that has been affected). Although, I think, the rupiah is relatively stable," he remarked.
According to Jokowi, the United States will adopt a refraction policy to strengthen its economy. "This means that the rupiah rate (against the US dollar) no longer reflects Indonesias fundamental economy, but the US economy."
He called on people to push aside the perception that the greenback is a relevant standard for measuring the Indonesian economy.
"It would be misleading to measure the Indonesian economy using the US dollar as a standard, when our economy is in fact fine," he stated.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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