New Indonesian budget given cool response

As Asian currencies continue to fall in value on the world's financial markets, President Suharto of Indonesia has presented an annual budget on behalf of his government which is designed to steer the country out of its economic crisis.

Mr Suharto said the budget demonstrated a commitment to reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund in its forty-billion dollar rescue package for Indonesia last year.

There will be no increase in public service salaries, but subsidies on food and fuel will rise.

Local analysts have given a cool response, saying the budget measures do not go far enough in implementing the IMF's austerity programme.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service