Crisis-hit firms have received ¥3.83 trillion

The government spent about ¥3.83 trillion in the seven months through June giving emergency loans to and buying commercial paper from private businesses hit by the global financial crisis, according to data made available Saturday.

The government effectively declared in its monthly economic report for June that the economy has bottomed out of the recession, but analysts say businesses are still largely dependent on public funds and assistance.

The data, including information from the Finance Ministry, show the money was spent in a total of 12,800 cases of emergency loans and CP purchases implemented by three government-backed lenders — Development Bank of Japan, Shoko Chukin Bank and Japan Bank for International Cooperation — as well as by private lenders.

The DBJ extended emergency loans totaling ¥1.83 trillion to large and midsize companies and bought ¥350 billion worth of CP, or short-term debt issued by companies to facilitate operations, between December and June.

The bank's emergency loans swelled to ¥390 billion in June alone, following ¥230 billion in May and ¥140 billion in April, due partly to a large loan extended to Japan Airlines.

Shoko Chukin Bank, which mainly supports small and medium-size companies, offered a total of ¥840 billion in loans.

JBIC, which helps finance Japanese businesses' overseas projects, extended ¥810 billion in loans.

Private-sector lenders have provided credit guarantees for a total of 596,465 loans worth ¥11.87 trillion taken by small and midsize companies by the end of June, up ¥2.68 billion from the end of March.