[JAKARTA] Indonesia's coordinating minister for economics, Sofyan Djalil, said he did not want the rupiah currency to be traded too weakly against the dollar after it slid to a 17-year low on Thursday.

"We don't want the rupiah to be too weak," Mr Djalil said, but added that though the rupiah's exchange rate was fluctuating, it was still safe.

The government will improve matters on the fiscal side by accelerating spending, Mr Djalil said, while Bank Indonesia would manage the monetary side.

The Indonesian rupiah closed at 13,279 to the dollar on Thursday, its weakest since August 1998, during the throes of the Asian financial crisis.

It has weakened more than 6 per cent this year to become the worst performing currency in emerging Asia.

REUTERS