Exchange Rate Responses and Volatility Spillover Effects during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Indonesia

Febiyansah, Panky Tri

Economic and Finance in Indonesia
Vol. 69, No. 2

This paper aims to assess the impact of the confirmed COVID-19 cases, the timing of the outbreak, and physical measures on the returns and spillover effects of exchange rate in Indonesia. The model will be tested by the exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedastic (EGARCH) process and the spillover volatility index. The study discovers that the confirmed cases, outbreak news, and the implementation of large-scale social restrictions simultaneously contribute to a leverage effect on the volatility of a direct quote of Indonesian Rupiah to Australian Dollar, Euro, US Dollar, Singapore Dollar, and Great British Pound. To a certain extent, the heatwave as well as the meteor-shower effects as a result of clustering events and intense spillover effects in the currency market of Indonesia are observed.