Australia offers 1 bln USD standby loan to Indonesia
10/12/2008 16:18
Australia will provide US$1 billion standby loan to Indonesia, to help the
country to tackle the deepening impact of the global financial routs, according
to a report reaching in Jakarta from Bali.
Indonesia has sought sources of
loans from Japan, Australia, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank to
plug budget deficit in 2009, after the country plans to cut bond sales by a
third due to the seeping of investors appetite.
Australian Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd conveyed the offer during a meeting with Indonesian President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono. The president thanked Rudd for the offer.
"During the
crisis, all countries need financial support, including Indonesia," he told a
press conference in Bali.
Indonesia has forecast its budget deficit around
52.7 trillion rupiah (US$4.37 billion) in 2009.
The Southeast Asia's largest
economy, has slashed its 2009 growth forecast from 6.3 percent to 4.5-5 percent
next year, as global economic conditions deteriorate.
The Indonesian
authorities are scrambling to ease the fallout of the global economic downturn
by boosting purchasing power at its huge domestic market with over 230 million
population.
Xinhua
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