Rupiah Steady, Gov't Said To Be Working On Law Limiting BI Autonomy

Spot USD/IDR re-opened a tad higher today and last sits +28 at IDR14,413, happy to hold a relatively tight range. Local trade report takes focus today.

• Consensus is for Indonesian trade surplus to have expanded to $2.229bn in Feb from $1.959bn.
• Later in the week, focus turns to the latest monetary policy decision from Bank Indonesia, with virtually all analysts expecting policymakers to stand pat.
• Speaking of central bank matters, a draft omnibus financial sector reform bill seen by BBG seeks to increase the gov't's influence on Bank Indonesia's decisions. The proposed bill would require BI to take the gov't's economic strategy into account, while increasing BI's ability to fund public debt.
• Last year's attempts to limit Bank Indonesia's autonomy provoked backlash from investors and had to be put on hold. A Finance Ministry off'l commented that the draft legislation is still under discussion.
• Bulls see Mar 9 high of IDR14,463 as their initial target and a break here is needed to reinstate broader bullish momentum. Conversely, a fall through Mar 12 low of IDR14,340 would open up Mar 3 low of IDR14,243.