Indonesia c.bank keeps key rate at 6.00 pct, as expected

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia's central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Thursday, as expected, reiterating that its main objective remained preserving financial stability and reducing the current account deficit.

Bank Indonesia (BI) maintained the 7-day reverse repurchase rate at 6.00 percent, where it has been since November, as predicted by all 25 economists in a Reuters poll.

It also left its two other main rates, the Deposit Facility and Lending Facility rates, at 5.25 percent and 6.75 percent, respectively.

BI raised interest rates six times by 175 basis points last year to combat capital outflows that had sent the rupiah to its lowest level since 1998. The rupiah has rebounded and been one of best-performing emerging Asian currencies in 2019.

Despite tighter monetary conditions and bouts of market turbulence, Southeast Asia's largest economy last year grew 5.17 percent, slightly faster than expected.

(Reporting by Gayatri Suroyo; Editing by Richard Borsuk)