Romania To Seek Alternate Financing To Cover Budget Gap - Ctrl Bker

Romania’s Finance Ministry has to look for new sources to finance its budget gap this year, as the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission are likely to defer additional loan tranches for early 2010, central bank governor Mugur Isarescu said Friday.

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Speaking in a news conference, Isarescu said he expects the IMF to delay an EUR1.5 billion disbursement for January next year, due to ongoing political uncertainty in the Eastern European country.

A planned EUR400 million hard currency sale on the local market due today has already been overwritten, Isarescu added.

The Finance Ministry hopes to raise at least EUR400 million in three-year treasury bonds today, the second debt sale in foreign currency this year. Mid-August, the ministry sold at auction EUR447 million of four-year treasury bonds.

Romanian President Traian Basescu said the IMF postponed its review of the EUR13 billion stand-by loan until a proper government is in place.

The IMF officials will leave Romania on November 7, two days earlier than initially scheduled, according to Basescu, who added the country has to approve the next year budget until December 10, when the IMF Board meeting is planned. Also, the fiscal responsibility law needs to be approved by the end of the year.

Romania and the IMF agreed in spring on a EUR13 billion stand-by loan, part of a EUR20 billion bailout aid that includes funds from the European Union and other international lenders.

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