Falling US dollar hurting our rebuilding work: East Timor Prez
The depreciating US dollar and rising oil prices are taking a toll on East Timor's efforts to rebuild its shaky economy, the impoverished Southeast Asian country's President said.
By Agencies |
SINGAPORE: The depreciating US dollar and rising oil prices are taking a toll on East Timor's efforts to rebuild its shaky economy, the impoverished Southeast Asian country's President said.
East Timor, Asia's youngest nation, celebrated six years of independence this week following decades of harsh Indonesian rule. It is struggling to achieve economic and political stability despite being rich in oil and gas resources.
President Jose Ramos-Horta said in a speech late on Saturday that most of the country's petroleum revenues are invested in low-interest US Treasury bonds, whose return rates have further been affected by the falling greenback.
Ramos-Horta told the Singapore Foreign Correspondents Association that when he was foreign minister five years ago ``I was alerting my colleagues to pay attention to the coming devaluation of the US dollar, to the coming increase in oil prices.''
He said he told them ``let's start diversifying our investment portfolio. Well, no one listened.''
Although not a major oil and gas producing country like Kuwait and Qatar, East Timor's offshore hydrocarbon resources earn it US$100 million (euro65 million) to US$200 million (euro130 million) a month. By the end of the year, the country will have US$ 3 billion (euro1.95 billion) in its state petroleum fund, said Ramos-Horta.
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who survived an assassination attempt in February, did not elaborate on what he meant by instability - whether political or social.
Looking healthy, Ramos-Horta said his government has been able to cope with the recent hike in rice prices but warned that it cannot always rely on rice imports.
East Timor, Asia's youngest nation, celebrated six years of independence this week following decades of harsh Indonesian rule. It is struggling to achieve economic and political stability despite being rich in oil and gas resources.
President Jose Ramos-Horta said in a speech late on Saturday that most of the country's petroleum revenues are invested in low-interest US Treasury bonds, whose return rates have further been affected by the falling greenback.
Ramos-Horta told the Singapore Foreign Correspondents Association that when he was foreign minister five years ago ``I was alerting my colleagues to pay attention to the coming devaluation of the US dollar, to the coming increase in oil prices.''
He said he told them ``let's start diversifying our investment portfolio. Well, no one listened.''
Although not a major oil and gas producing country like Kuwait and Qatar, East Timor's offshore hydrocarbon resources earn it US$100 million (euro65 million) to US$200 million (euro130 million) a month. By the end of the year, the country will have US$ 3 billion (euro1.95 billion) in its state petroleum fund, said Ramos-Horta.
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The Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who survived an assassination attempt in February, did not elaborate on what he meant by instability - whether political or social.
Looking healthy, Ramos-Horta said his government has been able to cope with the recent hike in rice prices but warned that it cannot always rely on rice imports.
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