Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's external debt rose from 10.4 percent in September to 11.9 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) in October 2019 due to net loan withdrawal and strengthening of the Rupiah against the US dollar, Bank Indonesia stated Monday. In October this year, the country's external loan was recorded at US$400.6 billion or equivalent to Rp5.611 trillion. The total figure comprised $202 billion in public debt and $198.6 billion private debt and loans of state-owned enterprises.

Bank Indonesia explained that the rise of the country's external loan stemmed from the government's high debt amid the slow growth of private debt.

According to the central bank, the public debt would be allocated to fund some infrastructure projects in the fields of health and social affairs (19 percent of the total figure); construction (16.5 percent); education (16.1 percent); public administration, defense, and social security (15.3 percent); finance and insurance (13.4 percent).

Despite the high debt figure, Bank Indonesia claimed that the external loan's structure remains healthy as was indicated by the ratio of foreign debt to the gross domestic product in October 2019 by 35.8 percent.

Meanwhile, Indonesia's private debt was dominated by four main sectors such as finance and insurance; electricity and power plants; processing industry; as well as mining and quarrying.

"These four industries contribute to at least 76.6 percent of the total external private loan," Bank Indonesia added. (INE)

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Reporter: Indra Arief /Genta Tenri Mawan
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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