Japan, India strike $15 bln currency swap deal

NEW DELHI - Agence France-Presse

Japan and India struck a $15 billion currency swap deal on Dec. 27 that could support the sagging rupee as Japanese premier Yoshihiko Noda made a trip to New Delhi to push closer ties. 
The deal was part of a slew of agreements clinched by India and Japan, which is seeking to forge stronger alliances in the Asian region as a counterweight to China’s growing might.
“I am convinced we need to strengthen the economic partnership,” said Noda, whose country sees India as an attractive market with its increasingly affluent middle class.
Coming on the heels of a trip to China where the main focus was on political diplomacy, Noda’s visit to India stressed economic relations.
The currency swap, under which Japan could lend India dollars to defend the ailing rupee, is an expansion of a $3 billion accord that expired earlier this year.