JAKARTA ~ The central bank cut its key interest rate this week by 50 basis points to 10.25 percent amid solid macroeconomic conditions, a bank official said.

“We are observing that economic improvement is now apparent while macroeconomic stability remains under control,” Budi Mulya, the bank’s director for public relations, told reporters on Tuesday.

The cut, already widely forecast, was the sixth since May and compares with a rate of 12.75 percent at end of last year.

Budi Mulya said the performance of the country’s economy had improved as shown by figures for the first, second and third quarters of the year.

Inflation has been reined in below the government’s 2006 forecast of around 8 percent, the rupiah was stable and credit growth was encouraging, he said.