Japan to pledge fresh aid to Asia at G20 summit: report

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso plans to pledge 500 billion yen ($5.1 billion) in support for Asian countries to help the region survive the global financial crisis, a report said on Saturday.

Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso plans to pledge 500 billion yen ($5.1 billion) in support for Asian countries to help the region survive the global financial crisis, a report said on Saturday.

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Aso is to announce the offer when he attends a summit of the Group of 20 leading industrialised and developing nations on Thursday next week in London, the Nikkei business daily reported.

The planned Japanese assistance is aimed at helping stimulate domestic demand and promote farm and infrastructure development in such countries as India, Indonesia and Vietnam, the newspaper said.

The aid will in principle take the form of yen-denominated loans and be dispersed over three years, the daily said.

It will be regarded as additional support on top of the 1.5 trillion yen foreign aid to Asia announced by Aso at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in January, the Nikkei said.