FOUR STATE INSURANCE COMPANIES FAIL TO PAY DIVIDENDS

Jakarta, Apr 27 (ANTARA) - The Office of the State Enterprises Ministry will lower the 2008 dividend remittance of some state insurance companies from 30 to nil percent.

"An insurance dividend will be reduced to nil pct from 30 pct," the ministry's secretary Muhammad Said Didu said after a hearing with commission VI of the House of Representatives in Jakarta Monday.

The four state insurance companies are PT Asuransi Kesehatan, PT Jamsostek PT Asuransi ABRI (Asabri), and PT Taspen.

Said added that the aim of the measure was to enable the companies to increase their capital.

Earlier, the state enterprises ministry had hinted to lower the dividends of state banks from 50 pct.

But Said did not mention the amount of the state banks, because it is still under discussion.

The lowering of state bank dividends has been prompted by the global financial crisis for maintaining the banks' capital adequacy ratio (CAR).

He said that in 2009 in view of the global economic crisis, the state enterprises ministry would still make an adjustment of the different dividends of each sector.

In fiscal 2008, the dividends of all state enterprises to the 2009 State Budget reached Rp26.1 trillion, and only Rp29.08 trillion last year.

***2***