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Indonesian stocks, which dropped steeply on Wednesday morning due to negative sentiments from the debt crisis in Europe, continued its drop after the midday break following news that Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati may resign after she was named managing director of the World Bank Group.

The Jakarta Composite Index continued its fall during the midday break, weakening 2.8 percent from Tuesday’s close.

Edwin J Sebayang, the head of research at PT Bhakti Securities, predicted the drop would only be short term. “No matter what, investors will focus more on the fundamentals” of the Indonesian economy, he said.

“A little correction is normal,” Edwin said, adding that the JCI’s gain has already been higher than the other international stock markets.

Meanwhile, the rupiah fell 0.86 percent to 9,098 as of 12:22 p.m.

Edwin said he believed that there were a number of capable candidates that could replace Sri Mulyani, including Anggito Abimanyu, the Finance Ministry’s head of fiscal policy, and the current acting Bank Indonesia Governor Darmin Nasution.

Joachim von Amsberg, World Bank country manager for Indonesia, told the Jakarta Globe in a telephone interview that, “Reforms are embedded in government in the overall leadership of the country. I think they are no longer dependent on a single person. That’s why we are quite confident that I think Indonesia will continue to do well.”