Bloomberg Indonesia’s central bank has paused its monetary policy easing ahead of adopting a new benchmark interest rate in August aimed at spurring lending and growth in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. Governor Agus Martowardojo and his board kept the reference rate at 6.75 percent, Bank Indonesia said Thursday, in line with the forecasts of 23 of the 26 economists ...

  Reuters Oman has chosen five banks to arrange the sultanate’s first international bond issue in almost 20 years, sources aware of the matter said on Thursday. The upcoming US dollar-denominated issue comes as Oman, like other Gulf states, looks to tap international bond markets to shore up state finances pressured by low oil prices. Oman has chosen Citi, JP ...

  Bloomberg Purchases of previously owned U.S. homes rose more than projected in March, indicating resilience in demand heading into the spring selling season. Contract closings climbed 5.1 percent to a 5.33 million annualized rate from February’s 5.07 million, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed Wednesday in Washington. The median forecast of 75 economists in a Bloomberg survey ...