Mar'ie meets with American business
Mar'ie meets with American business
WASHINGTON (AP): Indonesian Finance Minister Mar'ie Muhammad told American business leaders Wednesday that Indonesia is sticking by its program of financial change and will do whatever is necessary to restore confidence in its economy.
After the Indonesian currency hit a record low Tuesday, Muhammad told the U.S.- ASEAN Business Council that the rupiah is very undervalued, according to a participant in the meeting.
The private meeting at the Indonesian Embassy included representatives of U.S. companies who have interests in Indonesia's economy.
The finance minister said the government would not backtrack on reforms in an attempt to boost the Indonesian economy, pledging instead to continue with the agenda set by the International Monetary Fund, according to the account provided by the participant, who declined to be identified.
Meanwhile, China announced Thursday that is was planning to participate in a financial rescue package for Indonesia, following its one-billion-dollar bailout for Thailand in August.
"China has already participated to the sum of one billion dollars in the financial rescue package for Thailand," said Assistant Foreign Minister Chen Jian.
"We are also considering participating in the rescue package for Indonesia, but I am not aware of the sums involved," he said at a briefing ahead of the upcoming informal East Asian summit meeting in Malaysia.
Indonesia has secured a US$23 billion IMF-led bailout plus an additional $15 billion in bilateral pledges to overcome an economic crisis stemming from a sharp fall in the value of its currency.
The growing financial crisis in Asia is sure to overshadow the Malaysian meeting, which will involve highest-level representation from China, Japan, South Korea and the nine members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- Brunei, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
"Since the decision was made to hold this 'nine-plus-three' meeting, an economic turmoil of quite considerable scale has taken place in this region," Chen said.
"We stand ready to engage in further discussions with ASEAN and the other East Asian nations on how to take further actions to ensure financial security and stability," he added.