Govt debt burden set to decrease<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The negative net transfer of official capital
\nfrom Indonesia increased last fiscal year but is expected to
\ndecrease in the current fiscal year, Minister of Finance Mar'ie
\nMuhammad said yesterday.<\/p>\n
Speaking at a hearing with the House of Representatives'
\nCommission VII -- which oversees banking, finance, trade and
\ncooperatives -- Mar'ie said that the government's servicing of
\nand installments on foreign debts increased to Rp 18.22 trillion
\n(US$8.18 billion) during the 1994\/1995 fiscal year, which ended
\nin March, but that receipts from new loans amounted only to Rp
\n10.98 trillion.<\/p>\n
Even though the government's receipts from new loans in
\n1994\/1995 were larger than the Rp 10.37 trillion booked in the
\nprevious fiscal year there was still a negative net transfer of
\nRp 7.24 trillion last year, he added.<\/p>\n
The negative transfers were up by 6.5 percent from Rp 6.8
\ntrillion in the 1993\/1994 fiscal year.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie said that in the current fiscal year the servicing and
\ninstallments of official foreign debts are estimated to decrease
\nto Rp 17.9 trillion and the amount of new foreign loans is
\nexpected to reach Rp 11.76 trillion.<\/p>\n
Therefore, the negative net transfers in the current fiscal
\nyear will decline to Rp 6.14 trillion, or 15 percent less than
\nlast year's negative net transfer of Rp 7.24 trillion.<\/p>\n
"We will continue to suffer such negative transfers of
\nofficial capital during the current five-year development plan.
\nHowever, it is worth noting that this situation is not an
\nextraordinary matter," Mar'ie told the commission.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie added that the government is committed to further
\ndecreasing the negative net transfers in the official capital
\naccount but he did not give further details.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's foreign debts are currently estimated at about
\n$100 billion, of which $60 billion is owed by the public sector
\nand the remainder by the private sector.<\/p>\n
At yesterday's hearing, Mar'ie also expressed optimism that
\nthis year's inflation rate will remain at a one digit level,
\nbetween 8.8 percent and nine percent.<\/p>\n
The cumulative inflation rate for the first eight months of
\nthis year reached 6.41 percent, slightly lower than the 6.85
\npercent recorded for the same period of last year.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie also reported to the House members that bank credits
\nextended to small and medium enterprises had already reached Rp
\n37.6 trillion as of June, or 25.1 percent of all commercial
\nbanks' total outstanding credits.<\/p>\n
Of the Rp 37.6 trillion, 45 percent was made up of small loans
\nof less than Rp 25 million, 10.6 percent of loans amounting to
\nbetween Rp 25 million and Rp 50 million, 14.7 percent of between
\nRp 50 million and Rp 100 million and 29.5 percent of between Rp
\n100 million and Rp 250 million.<\/p>\n
Mar'ie said the collateral-free loans of up to Rp 50 million
\nfor small and medium-sized enterprises he proposed last month are
\nexpected to provide small enterprises with access to bank
\ncredits.<\/p>\n
He said about 19 million small businesses will be eligible for
\nthe loans.<\/p>\n
He said the state-owned Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Bank Negara
\nIndonesia will start providing collateral-free loans as of this
\nmonth. The other state-owned commercial banks -- Bank Ekspor
\nImpor Indonesia, Bank Bumi Daya, Bank Pembangunan Indonesia, Bank
\nDagang Negara and Bank Tabungan Negara -- will follow suit next
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
"Final preparations for the loan scheme will be discussed here
\nlater this month by the branch managers of all state banks, the
\ngovernor of Bank Indonesia (the central bank) and myself,"
\nMar'ie added. (kod\/rid)<\/p>\n
Photo -- Page 8<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-debt-burden-set-to-decrease-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }