Japan Foreign Aid South Korea

South Korea's most powerful conglomerates, hearing alarm bells in the country's financial crisis, are paring down their aggressive expansion plans at home and abroad, corporate executives said Friday. Separately on Friday, Japan agreed to give the country financial help, but only on condition that South Korea assent to terms set for it in a proposed International Monetary Fund aid package.

South Korea's most powerful conglomerates, hearing alarm bells in the country's financial crisis, are paring down their aggressive expansion plans at home and abroad, corporate executives said Friday. Separately on Friday, Japan agreed to give the country financial help, but only on condition that South Korea assent to terms set for it in a proposed International Monetary Fund aid package.

Japan has agreed to provide South Korea with a low-interest untied loan of up to $53 million to finance economic and social projects. The Foreign Ministry said $9.9 million will be used for construction and expansion of the Daecheong multipurpose dam in a suburb of Dajeon. It said $42.8 million will be set aside for modernization and expansion of small- and medium-size manufacturing industries. The loan to be extended under Japan's official development aid program carries an annual interest rate of 4%, the ministry said.

Japan has agreed to provide South Korea with a low-interest untied loan of up to $53 million to finance economic and social projects. The Foreign Ministry said $9.9 million will be used for construction and expansion of the Daecheong multipurpose dam in a suburb of Dajeon. It said $42.8 million will be set aside for modernization and expansion of small- and medium-size manufacturing industries. The loan to be extended under Japan's official development aid program carries an annual interest rate of 4%, the ministry said.