MONAY MATTERS

MONAY MATTERS

Indonesia's gross foreign exchange reserves rose to US$28.08
billion as of Nov. 23 from $27.73 billion the week before, due to
state revenues received from oil and gas exports during the
period. Net foreign exchange reserves rose to Rp128.79 trillion
from Rp125.85 trillion a week earlier, based on Bank Indonesia's
constant exchange rate of Rp7,000. --Dow Jones

The weighted average interest rate on one-month Sertifikat Bank
Indonesia notes rose slightly at the weekly auction Wednesday,
the central bank said. The one-month SBI notes stood at 17.60
percent, up from 17.59 percent at last week's auction, Bank
Indonesia said. BI said it accepted Rp14.05 trillion in bids at
the auction, or 99.8 percent of total bids. --Dow Jones

An investment arm of the Singapore government said it has bought
some 3.9 million additional shares of Indonesia's auto giant PT
Astra International, but remains a minority shareholder. In a
letter to the Jakarta Stock Exchange obtained by Reuters on
Wednesday, the Government of Singapore Investment Corp. said it
bought 3.9 million shares of Astra on Nov. 21, raising its stake
to 5.42 percent from 5.26 percent. --Reuters

Japan is planning to provide 2.0 billion yen (US$16.15 million)
in grants to India, which has seen its economy worsen since the
Sept. 11 attacks against the United States, NHK public television
said on Wednesday. The assistance would be Japan's first
provision of new aid to India since it suspended economic
sanctions against the country last month. --Reuters

South Korea's economy is likely to bounce back and grow between
four and five percent next year, President Kim Dae-jung said on
Wednesday. Kim told Reuters in an interview he favored more
flexible policies to safeguard growth in one of Asia's best
performing economies. He also vowed to leave the fate of unsound
"chaebol" conglomerates to market forces. --Reuters

The IMF and the World Bank have agreed to provide Tanzania with a
total US$3 billion in debt relief under an initiative for the
world's most indebted nations, the two organizations announced
Tuesday. Tanzania is the fourth to qualify for debt reduction
under the World Bank and International Monetary Fund's Heavily
Indebted Poor Countries initiative, after Bolivia, Mozambique and
Uganda. --AFP

Vietnam's National Assembly is expected on Wednesday to approve a
historic trade agreement with the United States that will give it
access to the world's biggest market at the same low tariffs
enjoyed by most nations. The agreement, expected to take effect
at the start of next year, will finally remove Washington's
former enemy from a small group of states, including North Korea,
Afghanistan, Serbia and Cuba, denied normal trade relations with
the United States. --Reuters

Mexico, whose leaders have often condemned anti-globalization
protesters, has become the first country to offer to host a World
Trade Organization ministerial meeting in 2003, officials said on
Tuesday. Trade envoys say South Africa has informally expressed
an interest in hosting the meeting, which is likely to attract
large numbers of anti-globalization protesters. --Reuters

Growth in the euro-zone money supply, which the European Central
Bank views as a key indicator of future inflation, accelerated
further in October, data published on Wednesday showed. But
analysts said the development would not necessarily reduce the
chances of further rate cuts in the 12-country euro zone, because
the data were still being distorted by special factors. --AFP

Credit rating agency Standard and Poor's (S and P) said Wednesday
it will place 12 Japanese banks on credit watch with negative
implications citing their feeble finances and crippling bad loan
burden. "Japan's banking sector will likely require additional
direct government capital injections of up to three percent of
GDP (gross domestic product) to remain solvent," the U.S. risk
evaluator said in a statement when it downgraded Japan's
sovereign debt ratings. --AFP

Oil prices tilted lower on Wednesday after weekly data from the
United States showed inventories rising and demand slowing.
U.S. stocks of gasoline and heating oil swelled sharply last week
as high refinery production and lower demand piled up surplus
fuel, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said in a report
released after the close of business on Tuesday. Brent crude
traded in London fell 24 cents to $18.78 a barrel. -- Reuters