Govt has no intention to resume talks with Paris Club<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
Despite the devastating impact of the Bali bombing on the
\neconomy, the government said it would maintain its commitment not
\nto seek further debt restructuring facilities through the Paris
\nClub of creditor nations.<\/p>\n
\"Despite what has happened in Bali, our commitment that we
\nwill not seek a fourth edition of debt relief from the Paris Club
\nremains,\" Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dorodjatun
\nKuntjoro-Jakti told a seminar here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The Paris Club, which groups together the country's major
\nsovereign creditors for talks on debt rescheduling, granted the
\ncountry in April a restructuring of some US$5.4 billion of a
\ntotal $7.5 billion in foreign debt due between April 1, 2002 and
\nDec. 31, 2003.<\/p>\n
Government officials have since repeatedly stated that the
\nApril deal was the last, saying that any restructuring of foreign
\ndebts would no longer be needed in the future, based on an
\nassumption that the country would experience a zero deficit in
\nits state budget for the 2004 fiscal year.<\/p>\n
However, the recent bomb blasts in Bali have cast doubts over
\nthe government's capability to meet the zero deficit target. The
\nimpact is expected to be so huge that the government decided to
\nrevise almost all assumptions in the 2003 draft budget, including
\nthe deficit target.<\/p>\n
The figure is not yet final, but it is widely expected that
\nthe deficit target would be raised from the initial Rp 26
\ntrillion, or 1.3 percent of the country's gross domestic product
\n(GDP), to between 1.6 percent and 2 percent of GDP.<\/p>\n
The higher-than-expected deficit comes partly as a result of
\nhigher spending in productive sectors.<\/p>\n
The government plans to increase the budget for development
\nspending next year to boost economic activities in a bid to
\nmaintain high economic growth despite the damaging impact of the
\nBali bomb blasts on the economy.<\/p>\n
The government now has a staggering $131 billion in total
\ndebts, or around 90 percent of GDP, including $70 billion in
\nexternal loans. This year alone, budget allocation for the
\nservicing of the debt reached Rp 136.2 trillion.<\/p>\n
Foreign Debt Restructuring<\/p>\n
(US$ billion)<\/p>\n
Total Matures Rescheduling<\/p>\n
Paris Club I 4.2 Aug. 6 '98 - March 31'00 15-20 years
\nParis Club II 5.8 April 1 '00 - March 31'02 15-20 years
\nParis Club III 5.5 April 1 '02 - Dec. 31 '03<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-has-no-intention-to-resume-talks-with-paris-club-1447899208",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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