Indonesia to ease travel to boost foreign exchange reserves

[JAKARTA] Indonesia plans to offer visa-free travel to four additional countries this year to help increase foreign exchange reserves as its rupiah currency weakens against the US dollar.

The government will offer visa-free travel to tourists from China, Japan, South Korea and Russia, Sofyan Djalil, Indonesia's chief economic minister told reporters on Friday. China and Japan are among the top five tourists sources for Indonesia.

The four additional countries will bring total visa-free travel into Indonesia to 19 countries. "The visa-free policy is aimed to attract tourists because it is the quickest way to bring in foreign exchange," Mr Djalil said.

The policy will be among a new set of regulations the government is expected to issue soon to help narrow the country's current account deficit and strengthen the rupiah .

REUTERS