Indofood plans to buy back bonds<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A unit of publicly listed instant-noodle maker PT Indofood Sukses
\nMakmur is seeking to redeem US$280 million in bonds it issued in
\n2002, in an effort to reduce tax payments on the debt.<\/p>\n
Indofood International Finance Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary
\nof Indofood located in Mauritius, will present the buy-back plan
\nat a bondholders' meeting on Dec. 23, parent company president
\nAnthony Salim said in a media statement.<\/p>\n
The company sold the bonds on June 11, 2002 at a discount
\nprice of 99.05 cents to the dollar, Bloomberg data showed.<\/p>\n
At the upcoming meeting however, Indofood will offer to pay at
\n102 cent to the dollar, plus the interest from Dec. 18 to Jan. 6
\n2005, the statement added.<\/p>\n
The redemption plan comes in light of the government's plans
\nto cancel a tax treaty with Mauritius and increase the tax on the
\nisland-based bonds to about 20 percent starting January next
\nyear, from the current 10 percent.<\/p>\n
Should the Dec. 23 meeting come to no avail, another meeting
\nis expected to be held on Jan. 7.<\/p>\n
By that time, the company would offer a buy-back price at 101
\ncent to the dollar, together with interest accrued from Dec. 18
\nto Jan. 12.<\/p>\n
If Indofood fails to get bondholders' approval to repurchase
\nthe debt at the offered prices, the company \"will proceed to ask
\nthe English Court for a declaration that it is entitled to redeem
\nthe bonds at par.\"<\/p>\n
Indofood's foreign-currency debt is rated B2 by Moody's
\nInvestors Service and B by Standard & Poor's.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indofood-plans-to-buy-back-bonds-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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