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(AFX UK Focus) 2008-10-30 05:50
Hungary may tap IMF loan for refinancing-PM
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BUDAPEST, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Hungary will tap its $25.1 billion IMF-led standby loan only when market conditions for rolling over its debt are significantly worse, Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany said on Wednesday.
Gyurcsany said the loan, the biggest for an emerging market economy since the global crisis began, will serve as a buffer for Hungary to refinance its debt over the next 17 months with better conditions than those currently available in the market.
"This (deal) will not increase the debt stock of Hungary but rather serve as a guarantee that we have somewhere to turn if we are in trouble," Gyurcsany told public television m1 in an interview.

Hungary's battered markets rallied on Wednesday after Hungarian authorities secured a larger-than-expected rescue deal with the IMF and the European Union to restore confidence in the country's near-term public finances.
"I think there is only one case when we may resort (to this loan), namely when a bond matures on which so far the state had been paying 8 percent and the market would roll it over only at 10 percent," he said.
Hungarian bond yields spiked to 13 to 14 percent in the past weeks as liquidity dried up in the government debt market and the central bank hiked the benchmark base rate by 300 basis points to 11.5 percent in an emergency move.
Earlier on Wednesday the Hungarian state debt agency AKK said it would cancel all government bond auctions for the rest of the year and review shorter-dated debt issues as well to ease supply pressure on the market.
"Government bonds were traded at 13-14 percent (yields) over the past days and weeks. I'm certain the (loan) will carry a lower interest rate," Gyurcsany said. "It would be a great surprise if it were below 4 percent or above 6 percent."
At a joint news conference with IMF and EU officials earlier on Wednesday, central bank governor Andras Simor said the loan would be available at a fixed rate of 5 to 6 percent.
Gyurcsany said Hungarian authorities expected to sign the final accord on the deal in early November.
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Diane Craft) Keywords: HUNGARY IMF/PM

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