Bank Indonesia made its fifth rate cut this year, trimming its policy rate by 25 basis points to 5.00% to nudge economic growth higher, with inflation running below its 3%-5% target. Growth rates are mostly on the low side of reasonable, official rates are above zero and inflation is running below targets. And while none — except for Singapore — run monetary policies that actually target exchange rates, low interest rates do help them keep their currencies competitive. Earlier on Thursday, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand held steady, having already cut twice this year, lowering its policy rate to a record low of 2.0%. And while the Philippines central bank held its benchmark rate steady on Thursday, it is an odd man out in the region.

Source: The Edge Markets September 22, 2016 12:11 UTC