Japan continues boosting yen loans<\/p>\n
TOKYO (Reuter): Japan's economic problems have not stopped it
\nboosting yen loans to Asia and the rest of the world, official
\nstatistics released yesterday showed.<\/p>\n
Japan's yen loan commitments for the last fiscal year to March
\n31 rose 23.9 percent on the previous year to 1.09 trillion yen
\n(US$10.4 billion), while actual payments totaled 654.5 billion
\nyen ($6.29 billion), up 4.9 percent.<\/p>\n
The figures were contained in the annual report of The
\nOverseas Economic Cooperation Fund of Japan and showed Asia
\nremained the biggest beneficiary of yen loans at 881.8 billion
\nyen ($8.47 billion) on a commitment basis, up 11 percent on the
\nprevious year.<\/p>\n
But Asia's overall share dropped to 80.7 percent from last
\nyear's 90.0 percent as Japan raised its commitments to regions
\nsuch as Central and South America, the Middle East and Africa.<\/p>\n
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan joined the list of recipients and
\nTokyo resumed yen loans to Bulgaria for the first time in 20
\nyears, the report said.<\/p>\n
Most of the loans were for the improvement of economic
\ninfrastructure in developing countries, especially in the area of
\ntransportation, the report said.<\/p>\n
Yen loans for environmental projects also rose to a record
\n218.6 billion yen, or 20.8 percent of the total committed.<\/p>\n
Japan reduced the average interest rate on yen loans committed
\nin fiscal 1995 by 0.21 percentage points to 2.53 percent for
\ncommitments made last year, in line with a cut in Japanese
\ninterest rates, the report said.<\/p>\n
Yen loan recipients had repeatedly called upon Japan to ease
\nits repayment conditions in the light of the yen's surge against
\nthe dollar last year, it said.<\/p>\n
The report said all yen loans committed in 1995\/96 were untied
\n-- that is they do not require the recipient to give contracts to
\nJapanese companies for the projects financed.<\/p>\n
Yen loans have often been criticized as steps by Japan to
\ncreate new business for Japanese firms.<\/p>\n
The report said 27 percent of the total value of all contracts
\non yen-loan financed projects went to Japanese firms last year
\nand 60 percent to firms from developing countries.<\/p>\n
Industrialized countries, excluding Japan, took 13 percent of
\nthe total, it said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/japan-continues-boosting-yen-loans-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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