Malaysia to study another offer of Samurai bond from Japan - Dr Mahathir

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is studying another offer of Samurai bond from Japan, said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

“Yes, Japan is making a very cheap loan available, now it will be even lower, so we are studying how we can use this cheap money (loan) to overcome our financial problems," he told the media after launching 2019 World Tourism Conference here today.

Also attending the event was Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi. 

It was reported in March that Malaysia is willing to consider issuing another Samurai bond if it can obtain rates similar to the 0.63% per annum achieved in the earlier issuance of the 200 bln yen (RM8 bln) Samurai bonds.

A Samurai bond is a yen-denominated bond issued in Tokyo and subject to Japanese regulations.

The government has successfully issued its first Samurai bond in March with an oversubscription of more than 1.6 times at 324.7 billion yen against 200 billion yen offered.

The bond was guaranteed by Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) with a maturity tenure of 10 years with a full cost to the government at 0.63 per cent per annum.

Proceeds from the bond issuance would be used to fund infrastructure developments, including the construction of schools, hospitals, roads and utilities.

--  BERNAMA