Indonesia government spends US$29m in bond buy-back

Published Wed, Aug 12, 2015 · 01:59 PM

[JAKARTA] Indonesia spent around US$29 million buying back sovereign bonds from the secondary market on Wednesday, the Finance Ministry said in a statement.

The aim of the transactions was to manage the government's debt portfolio by targeting less liquid, fixed-rate sovereign bonds, known locally as Obligasi Negara, the statement said.

"The transaction is also aimed at giving support for government bonds that were largely under selling pressure," it added.

Acting through the Debt Management Office, the government bought back 401 billion rupiah (US$29.10 million) of bonds maturing May 2016 and September 2016.

Earlier, Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said he would coordinate with the country's central bank to "guard" bonds amid economic turmoil.

The yield on benchmark Indonesian 10-year bonds rose to 8.624 per cent on Wednesday, from 8.489 per cent a day earlier.

The rupiah fell nearly 2 per cent against the dollar to its lowest since July 1998 as China's devaluation hit the currency. Foreign investors hold 38 per cent of Indonesian government bonds.

REUTERS

BT is now on Telegram!

For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to  t.me/BizTimes

International

SUPPORT SOUTH-EAST ASIA'S LEADING FINANCIAL DAILY

Get the latest coverage and full access to all BT premium content.

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Browse corporate subscription here