Indonesian vice president says interest rate might be cut

Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said here on Friday that the central bank interest rate might be lower this month other wise the current rate of 9 percent would be too high.

The vice president told a press conference at his office that the deflation in April had given a room for the central bank -- Bank of Indonesia -- to cut the benchmark of interest rate, known as BI interest rate during the upcoming meeting of the deputy governors of the central bank on Tuesday.

"Every month the Bank of Indonesia cut the rate, except last month, as it was deflation last month," he said.

Indonesia posted 0.16 deflation in April, according to the National Statistic Bureau.

The vice president has asked banking sector to decline the rate to revamp the small and medium enterprises business in the Southeast Asia biggest economy.

The central bank did not change the rate last month and left it steady at 9.0 percent, after a string of nine cuts in a row.

The bank cut the rate last year from a high of 12.75 percent.

Source: Xinhua