Romanian gov't gets IMF agreement in principle for loan

The Government has got the agreement in principle from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the foreign loan, Prime Minister Emil Boc announced on Thursday.

'We got an informal answer that the agreement is ok, but they need the text of the Emergency Ordinance on the budget revision', the prime minister explained.

Boc added the Government will get an official answer from the IMF by about April 14 or 15; it has been learned, however, via diplomatic channels, that the IMF Board of Directors approved the letter of intent sent by the Romanian executive.

The Emil Boc Cabinet will have to approve at the Government's meeting on Saturday the Emergency Ordinance on the budget revision and the regulation of certain financial and fiscal measures, so that the IMF Board of Directors may discuss the agreement with Romania on May 4.

The prime minister said the IMF had recommended the Romanian authorities to send the Ordinance approved by the Government so that it may be translated and checked before May 4 and thus to be able to release the first instalment of the loan. It amounts to five billion euros, that will go to the National Bank of Romania, with the money to be used to ensure the stability of the leu-to-the-euro exchange rate and to re-launch crediting.

Romania will receive an outside financial support package worth roughly 20 billion euros, with the IMF to give a loan of 12.95 billion euros, the European Union five billion euros and the World Bank some one to 1.5 billion euros; roughly one billion euros will be provided by other financial institutions.

Agerpres