Japan to reschedule RI debts

Japan to reschedule RI debts

TOKYO (AFP): Japan is expected to agree to reschedule one
billion dollars of loans extended to Indonesia, the Nihon Keizai
Shimbun newspaper said Friday.

The Japanese government will make a final decision following
further discussions at the foreign, trade and finance ministries,
the business daily said, quoting government sources.

The move comes after Indonesia's other creditor countries
suspended debt repayments in their effort to help Jakarta cover
fiscal shortfalls in recent years.

The amount of rescheduling, which will include trade insurance
and loans from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, will
total one billion dollars, the newspaper said.

Japan, which has so far provided the country fresh loans
instead of rescheduling, is now considering joining the other
creditors in allowing the suspension of debt repayment, the
report said.