Almost 60% of RI debt short-term, says BIS

Almost 60% of RI debt short-term, says BIS

ZURICH (Reuters): Almost 60 percent of Indonesia's debt to major international banks is short-term, slightly below the Asian average of 62 percent, figures from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) show.

By the end of June 1997, Indonesia owed $58.7 billion to international banks with 59 percent, or $34.66 billion, due within the next 12 months or less, BIS figures show.

The percentage of Indonesian short-term debt eased during the first half of the year from 61.7 percent at the end of 1996.

Since 1992 Indonesia's short-term debt has fluctuated at around 60 percent. It hit a high of 62.5 percent in mid-1995, but has been slowly declining since then.

Indonesia's share of short-term debt of 59 percent compares with a 67.9 percent share for South Korea by mid-1997.

The pace of new lending to Indonesia in the first half of 1997 eased to $4.8 billion from $6.3 billion in the second half of 1996 and from $5.1 billion in the first half of 1996.

The amount of Indonesian debt that is denominated as over two- year debt from mid-1997 amounted to $17.0 billion, or 29 percent. Debt that is due in less than two years, but over one year, amounted to $3.5 billion.

The majority of lending to Indonesia was to the non-bank private sector, such as industrial companies, followed by lending to Indonesian banks, BIS figures showed.

Lending to the non-bank private sector amounted to $39.7 billion, or 68 percent, while 21 percent, or $12.4 billion was borrowed by Indonesian banks.