Indonesia Central Bank Takes Lead on Economy Amid Vote Count

The potential for weeks of uncertainty over Indonesia’s presidential-election result puts the onus on the nation’s central bank to contain a current-account deficit that has hurt the rupiah.

Bank Indonesia, which met to set policy today, kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 7.5 percent for an eighth meeting even as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy cools. The decision was forecast by all 21 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Lower rates would add to domestic demand that has spurred the nation’s current-account deficit.