President assured national banking still safe

Tokyo (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during a stopover in Tokyo en route to Washington DC on Friday received a report from Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Boediono that the national banking sector was still in a safe condition.

Minister/State Secretary Hatta Rajasa told reporters covering the president's overseas trip that Yudhoyono had had a long-distance conversation with Boediono in Jakarta on the latest developments in the national banking sector following the failure of PT Bank Century Tbk to settle interbank transactions.

"The President received information from the Bank Indonesia governor on the current banking situation which has remained good," Minister Rajasa said.

Wherever he was, the president always communicated with the vice president, cabinet ministers and other high ranking state officials in Jakarta, Rajasa said.

BI, Indonesia's central bank, said in a statement on Thursday PT Bank Century Tbk was having problems in making interbank payments due to technical problems but the case was no threat to the country's banking system.

The central bank said that the problem at Bank Century was expected to be resolved by Friday.

President Yudhoyono left for the United States on Thursday to attend a weekend meeting of Group of 20 (G-20) leaders in Washington DC on November 15.

Yudhoyono's visit to Washington would be part of a 13-day tour of four countries, namely the Un1ted States, Mexico, Brazil, and Peru November 13-26, 2008.

In Mexico and Brazil, Yudhoyono would hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of the two countries while in Peru, he would attend the 16th Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting.

On Saturday, November 15, President Yudhoyono and other heads of state/government of G-20 countries would meet to discuss overhauling the international financial system in response to the credit crisis and the threat of a global recession. adapted from http://www.antara.co.id