Incessant rain overnight and today triggered widespread flooding in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, bringing traffic to a standstill.

“We expect flooding to worsen in several places because of continuing rain,” said Sutopo Nugroho, spokesperson for the National Disaster Management Agency.

The city hall in central Jakarta and the front lawn of the presidential palace were inundated in up to 20 centimetres of water, television pictures showed, after heavy rain began late Sunday.

There were no reports of casualties.

The city government has set up 25 posts and were deploying 3,600 personnel to help flood victims trapped in their neighbourhoods, Sutopo said.

Flooding is an annual occurrence in Jakarta during the rainy season.

- dpa