JAKARTA [Reuters] -Indonesia is considering injecting more liquidity into the country’s state banks, its finance minister said on Monday after a meeting with economists, bankers and brokerage executives.
Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa did not specify the amount, adding that the government was still reviewing the impact of a recent 200 trillion rupiah ($12.08 billion) injection of liquidity for state banks, which was given to boost lending as a way to stimulate economic growth.
“We will see how it’s going in the future. I think it’s showing very good progress … we will add more as needed,” he told reporters after a meeting at which the government discussed its current fiscal policies with bankers and brokerage officials.
The finance ministry currently has 250 trillion rupiah deposited at the Indonesian central bank, Purbaya said.
Last month, Purbaya transferred 200 trillion rupiah of government funds kept with the central bank to five banks: Bank Mandiri [BMRI.JK], Bank Negara Indonesia [BBNI.JK] Bank Rakyat Indonesia [BBRI.JK], Bank Tabungan Negara [BBTN.JK] and Bank Syariah Indonesia [BRIS.JK].
Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Bank Negara Indonesia asked for additional liquidity from the government, Purbaya said on Monday.
Purbaya said last week the impact of the injection would hopefully be reflected in the fourth quarter of this year, when economic growth would top 5.5% before rising to 6% next year.
Southeast Asia’s largest economy has faced a slow rebound since the COVID-19 pandemic, and though growth has been steady at around 5%, it has struggled to accelerate further and has failed to keep up with the expanding population.
[$1 = 16,555.0000 rupiah]
(Reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman; Writing by Stanley Widianto; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Susan Fenton)
