Wahid moves to bolster currency

The Indonesian President, Abdurrahman Wahid, has asked the country's central bank to support the rupiah, which fell to a seven-month low against the US dollar on Friday.

Mr Wahid said the weakness of the rupiah was the result of external and internal factors, including what he called the inability of the bureaucracy to handle economic reforms.

But he said it was a temporary problem and that the economy was sound.

Correspondents say the slide of the currency and lower-than-expected growth figures pose a serious threat to Mr Wahid's government in its quest to boost the economy and implement further democratic reforms.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service