The Agreement on the Bilateral Swap Arrangement under the Chiang Mai Initiative will be signed soon

  Learning from the Asian currency crisis in 1997 and in the spirit of strengthening of regional economic and financial cooperation as well as realizing the desire to develop regional self-help financial networking, ASEAN+3, i.e., ASEAN countries, Japan, China and Korea agreed with the Chiang Mai Initiative, which supplies necessary short-term liquidity mutually among ASEAN+3 countries, at the Finance Minister’s Meeting held in May 2000 in Chiang May, Thailand. Based on the Chiang Mai Initiative, ASEAN+3 member countries have had negotiations for conclusion of BSAs among them. Japan has concluded BSAs with Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia and China.

  The Ministry of Finance of Japan and the Bank Indonesia, acknowledged by the Government of Indonesia, announced today that they had reached the agreement concerning the bilateral swap arrangement (BSA) under the Chiang Mai Initiative. The signing of the BSA, which involves an amount of US$ 3 billion, is due to be performed between the Bank of Japan and the Bank Indonesia in the mid February 2003 in Tokyo and to enter into force on the same day. The BSA will allow Indonesia to swap with Japan Indonesia rupiahs for US dollars to finance short-term liquidity needs. Indonesia will be the 6th country that concludes a BSA with Japan. It is expected that this arrangement greatly contribute to financial stability and economic growth in East Asia.