Jakarta – Loans extended by Indonesian banks grew 7.7 percent in June from a year earlier, the slowest pace for any month since October, the financial services authority said on Friday.

In May, annual loan growth was 8.7 percent. Bank Indonesia (BI) will hold a policy meeting on Tuesday.

A Reuters poll showed BI is expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4.75 percent, where it has been since October, despite sluggish private consumption.

In 2016, the central bank cut the benchmark rate six times, by a total of 1.5 percentage points, in a bid to spur faster loan growth. (Reporting by Nilufar Rizki; Editing by Richard Borsuk)

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/indonesia-economy-loans-idUSJ9N1HJ02N?rpc=401&