asked the Minister for Finance the total IR£ value of foreign borrowings undertaken by (i) semi-State bodies and (ii) private bodies for which the Exchequer has underwritten the foreign exchange risk; when these guarantees were given; the currencies in which the loans were raised; and whether these bodies required individual approval for the loans.
Written Answers. - Foreign Borrowings.
449.
The total IR£ value of foreign borrowings on which the Exchequer has underwritten the foreign exchange risk to date is £352.3 million for semi-State bodies (viz. the Agricultural Credit Corporation and the Industrial Credit Corporation). For private bodies the figure is £25.872 million which relates to an associated banks facility for agricultural purposes. These guarantees have been issued at various dates from 1972 onwards. The currencies from which the loans were raised included sterling, deutschemarks, Dutch guilders, Belgian francs, Swiss francs, US dollars, Australian dollars, Japanese yen with some small amount of Luxembourg francs, Indian rupees, Saudia Arabian riyals, Kuwaiti dinars and United Arab Emirates dhirans.
Limits are specified for each facility on the amounts borrowed under Exchequer cover for exchange risk and, in addition, the semi-State bodies — ICC and ACC — have to get special approvals for individual foreign loans negotiated by them.