SBI rate down to 15.51%

JAKARTA: The weighted average interest rate on one month Bank Indonesia SBI promissory notes fell sharply to 15.51 percent at the weekly Wednesday auction from 15.81 percent last week.

Bank Indonesia said it accepted Rp 17 trillion in bids at the auction, which represents 65.64 percent of total bids.

The central bank has been allowing its benchmark interest rate to go down since the beginning of this year amid signs of easing inflationary pressure. The rate was over 18 percent late last year.

The lower interest rate environment would help ease the burden of the state budget in covering the interest cost of government bonds issued in the late 1990s to bailout banks. -- JP