> Finance & Stock Exchange > Banks and financial institutions > European Central Bank

*TOP NEWS* Central banks

Reuters: [2008-05-16 18:55:00]

............................................................... 
For news and data, double-click on the codes in brackets. 
Access to some items may depend on subscription level. 
.............................................................. 
> ***SNAPSHOT - WORLD KEY OFFICIAL INTEREST RATES***  [INT/RATE] 
> FACTBOX-Global interest res                     [GLOBAL/INT] 
............................................................... 
 FED 
> Fed's Lockhart sees hope that inflation slowing   [nN16384387] 
> BBA discusses Libor with c.banks as review nears  [nL16803212] 
> Fed seen winning OK to pay interest on reserves   [nN16397676] 
     
 ECB 
> ECB's Trichet sees very clear inflation pressure  [nL16546691] 
> ECB's Liebscher-supports steady hand policy on rates[nWEB5577] 
> ECB's Mersch says sees slight Q2 growth slowdown    [nWEB5569] 
> Constancio says no risk of European recession     [nL16580858] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-ECB's Constancio says hard to forecast [nL16845591] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-Brussels Economic Forum discussions    [nL16501453] 
> EU business not complaining about ECB - employers [nL16103682] 
> Austria sees no cause for worry on ECB collateral [nL16837718] 
 
 OTHER CENTRAL BANK NEWS    
> BoE restates no upper limit on mortgage swap plan [nL16524349] 
> Mexican central bank holds interest rate steady   [nN16402526] 
> Danish c.bank ups leading interest rate by 10 bps [nL16279785] 
> Icelandic central bank wins Nordic peers' support [nL16873331] 
> Hungary cbankers split over rates, all see risk   [nL16138867] 
> Hungary cbank to defend CPI goal, credibility     [nL16265637] 
> Czech c.bank sees gradual crown rise in 2008, 2009[nPRG000808] 
> TEXT-Minutes from Czech c.bank May 7 board meeting[nL16243359] 
> Thai c.bank seen keeping rates steady next week    [nBKK52886] 
> Mexico seen holding key interest rate          [ID:nN15306407] 
............................................................... 
> The outlook for Federal Reserve policy             [FED/AHEAD] 
> Reuters coverage of Basel II accord            [ID:nL10281706] 
............................................................... 
 UPCOMING CENTRAL BANK MEETINGS, EVENTS 
| Fed              June 24/25 | BOJ                  May 19/20 | 
| ECB                  June 5 | BoE                   June 4/5 | 
| BOC                 June 10 | RBA                     June 3 | 
| Riksbank*            July 2 | RBNZ                    June 5 | 
| Swiss Nat Bank      June 19 | Norges Bank             May 28 | 
 * Announcement July 3               
 
> Major central bank events                          [CEN/DIARY] 
> Diary of emerging market central bank events        [CEN/EMRG] 
................................................................ 
 REUTERS POLLS                                                
| US Fed Funds rate  [FED/R]  | ECB rates           [ECB/INT] | 
| British rates    [BOE/INT]  | Canadian rates       [CA/INT] | 
| Japanese rates   [BOJ/INT]  | Chinese rates      [CNY/POLL] | 
| Australian rates  [AU/INT]  | Swiss rates         [SNB/INT] | 
| Swedish rates     [SE/INT]  | South African rates  [ZA/INT] | 
| Top poll news      [POLL/] 
 ............................................................... 
 LATEST NEWS ON CENTRAL BANKS 
| Central bank news     [CEN] | U.S. Federal Reserve     [FED] | 
| Bank of Japan         [BOJ] | European Central Bank    [ECB] | 
| Swiss National Bank   [SNB] | Bank of England          [BOE] | 
| All forex news        [FRX] | Economic indicators      [ECI] | 
| Central Bank index<CENTRAL1>| Central bank rates<KEYRATES/1> | 
T ............................................................... 
 CENTRAL BANKERS' COMMENTS 
| Federal Reserve[FED/QUOTES] | ECB                [ECB/QUOTES]| 
| Bank of England[BOE/QUOTES] | Swiss National Bank[SNB/QUOTES]| 
| Sweden Riksbank[RIK/QUOTES] | 
 ............................................................... 
 DIARIES 
| Fed diary       [FED/DIARY] |  ECB diary         [ECB/DIARY] | 
| Today's FX market[MI/DIARY] |  Financial events  [KEY/DIARY] | 
| Diary index     [IND/DIARY] |  Polling diary    [POLL/DIARY] | 
 .............................................................. 
 WEB ADDRESSES 
 Federal Reserve: http://www.federalreserve.gov/ 
 Bank of Japan: http://www.boj.or.jp/en/index.htm 
 European Central Bank: http://www.ecb.int/index.html 
 Bank of England: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/ 
 Bank of Canada: http://www.bankofcanada.ca/en/ 
 Swiss National Bank: http://www.snb.ch 
 .............................................................. 
 ((David Stamp; London Treasury Desk +44 207 542 7716)) 
  

*TOP NEWS* Central banks

Reuters: [2008-05-16 17:19:00]

............................................................... 
For news and data, double-click on the codes in brackets. 
Access to some items may depend on subscription level. 
.............................................................. 
> ***SNAPSHOT - WORLD KEY OFFICIAL INTEREST RATES***  [INT/RATE] 
> FACTBOX-Global interest res                     [GLOBAL/INT] 
............................................................... 
 FED 
> Fed's Lockhart sees hope that inflation slowing   [nN16384387] 
> BBA discusses Libor with c.banks as review nears  [nL16803212] 
     
 ECB 
> ECB's Trichet sees very clear inflation pressure  [nL16546691] 
> ECB's Liebscher-supports steady hand policy on rates[nWEB5577] 
> ECB's Mersch says sees slight Q2 growth slowdown    [nWEB5569] 
> Constancio says no risk of European recession     [nL16580858] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-ECB's Constancio says hard to forecast [nL16845591] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-Brussels Economic Forum discussions    [nL16501453] 
> EU business not complaining about ECB - employers [nL16103682] 
> Austria sees no cause for worry on ECB collateral [nL16837718] 
 
 OTHER CENTRAL BANK NEWS    
> BoE restates no upper limit on mortgage swap plan [nL16524349] 
> Mexican central bank holds interest rate steady   [nN16402526] 
> Danish c.bank ups leading interest rate by 10 bps [nL16279785] 
> Icelandic central bank wins Nordic peers' support [nL16873331] 
> Hungary cbankers split over rates, all see risk   [nL16138867] 
> Hungary cbank to defend CPI goal, credibility     [nL16265637] 
> Czech c.bank sees gradual crown rise in 2008, 2009[nPRG000808] 
> TEXT-Minutes from Czech c.bank May 7 board meeting[nL16243359] 
> Thai c.bank seen keeping rates steady next week    [nBKK52886] 
> Mexico seen holding key interest rate          [ID:nN15306407] 
............................................................... 
> The outlook for Federal Reserve policy             [FED/AHEAD] 
> Reuters coverage of Basel II accord            [ID:nL10281706] 
............................................................... 
 UPCOMING CENTRAL BANK MEETINGS, EVENTS 
| Fed              June 24/25 | BOJ                  May 19/20 | 
| ECB                  June 5 | BoE                   June 4/5 | 
| BOC                 June 10 | RBA                     June 3 | 
| Riksbank*            July 2 | RBNZ                    June 5 | 
| Swiss Nat Bank      June 19 | Norges Bank             May 28 | 
 * Announcement July 3               
 
> Major central bank events                          [CEN/DIARY] 
> Diary of emerging market central bank events        [CEN/EMRG] 
................................................................ 
 REUTERS POLLS                                                
| US Fed Funds rate  [FED/R]  | ECB rates           [ECB/INT] | 
| British rates    [BOE/INT]  | Canadian rates       [CA/INT] | 
| Japanese rates   [BOJ/INT]  | Chinese rates      [CNY/POLL] | 
| Australian rates  [AU/INT]  | Swiss rates         [SNB/INT] | 
| Swedish rates     [SE/INT]  | South African rates  [ZA/INT] | 
| Top poll news      [POLL/] 
 ............................................................... 
 LATEST NEWS ON CENTRAL BANKS 
| Central bank news     [CEN] | U.S. Federal Reserve     [FED] | 
| Bank of Japan         [BOJ] | European Central Bank    [ECB] | 
| Swiss National Bank   [SNB] | Bank of England          [BOE] | 
| All forex news        [FRX] | Economic indicators      [ECI] | 
| Central Bank index<CENTRAL1>| Central bank rates<KEYRATES/1> | 
T ............................................................... 
 CENTRAL BANKERS' COMMENTS 
| Federal Reserve[FED/QUOTES] | ECB                [ECB/QUOTES]| 
| Bank of England[BOE/QUOTES] | Swiss National Bank[SNB/QUOTES]| 
| Sweden Riksbank[RIK/QUOTES] | 
 ............................................................... 
 DIARIES 
| Fed diary       [FED/DIARY] |  ECB diary         [ECB/DIARY] | 
| Today's FX market[MI/DIARY] |  Financial events  [KEY/DIARY] | 
| Diary index     [IND/DIARY] |  Polling diary    [POLL/DIARY] | 
 .............................................................. 
 WEB ADDRESSES 
 Federal Reserve: http://www.federalreserve.gov/ 
 Bank of Japan: http://www.boj.or.jp/en/index.htm 
 European Central Bank: http://www.ecb.int/index.html 
 Bank of England: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/ 
 Bank of Canada: http://www.bankofcanada.ca/en/ 
 Swiss National Bank: http://www.snb.ch 
 .............................................................. 
 ((David Stamp; London Treasury Desk +44 207 542 7716)) 
  

DIARY - European Central Bank (ECB) events to July 2008

Reuters: [2008-05-16 15:31:00]

  ======================================================      
This diary includes speeches and public appearances by members of the ECB's 
Governing Council, which sets monetary policy for the 15-nation euro zone. 
Refinancing tenders are listed at the bottom of this diary. 
    Some ECB events are also listed at 
http://www.ecb.int/events/html/index.en.html 
 All details of events are provisional, and inclusion of an event on this diary 
does not necessarily mean Reuters will cover it. 
     
    For euro zone economic data, please double-click on: 
    <EUROLANDMAY> for indicators released this month or 
    <EUROLANDJUN> for indicators released next month 
     
    For other related diaries, please double-click on: 
    [CEN/DIARY] - Major central bank events for 2008 
    [M/DIARY]   - Top economic events worldwide, 
    [IND/DIARY] - Index of  all Reuters diaries.     
    [MI/DIARY]  - Highlights of today's top events of interest 
                  to money markets.     
     ----------------------------------------- 
     
 GENERAL / ECONOMIC EVENTS 
 
 MONDAY, MAY 19 
 MADRID- Member of ECB Governing Council, Miguel Angel Fernandez 
Ordonez and Economy Ministry, Pedro Solbes, hold a press 
conference at the Bank of Spain - 1000 GMT 
  
 LJUBLJANA- Governor of the Bank of Slovenia, Marko Kranjec, 
holds a news conference on financial stability in Slovenia 
 - 1200 GMT 
  
 WEDNESDAY, MAY 21 
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council meeting. No interest rate 
announcements scheduled. Any announcement about other issues to 
be released at 1230 GMT.- 
  
 THURSDAY, MAY 22 
 ELTVILLE, Germany - ECB Governing Council member Axel Weber 
opens 10th Bundesbank Spring Conference on central banks and 
globalisation (0700-0730 GMT).- 
  
 SATURDAY, MAY 24 
 JERUSALEM- Israel to host the Group of Thirty (G30) Spring 
Meeting (to May 26). Attendeed include; ECB Governor Jean-Claude 
Trichet and Bank of England Governor Mervyn King as well as the 
central bank chiefs of India and China.- 
  
 TUESDAY, MAY 27 
 VIENNA- ECB Governing Council Member and Austrian Central Bank 
governour Klaus Liebscher to hold news conference at the general 
assembly (09:15)- 
  
 FRIDAY, MAY 30 
 LUXEMBOURG- Luxembourg Prime Minister and Eurogroup chairman 
Jean-Claude Juncker hosts the Luxembourg Financial Forum 2008. 
Themes include: Financial markets: trapped in a global crisis? 
Confidence and competence: the future of private banking. 
Eurogroup: an assessment of the first 10 years with ECB 
Executive Board member Juergen Stark (1300 GMT)- 
  
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council member Axel Weber opens a 
symposium to mark the 10th anniversary of the ECB- 
  
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council member Axel Weber attends the 
opening of the University of Frankfurt's House of Finance with 
German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck- 
  
 SATURDAY, MAY 31 
 TRENTO- Continuation of five-day economy event on "Markets and 
Democracy". Among expected attendees are ECB Executive Board 
member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, employers' association Confindustria 
for Sicily region Chairman Ivan Lo Bello, Gruppo Editoriale 
L'Espresso <ESPI.MI> Chairman Carlo De Benedetti, Mediaset 
<MS.MI> Chairman Fedele Confalonieri- 0800 GMT 
  
 ROME- ECB Governing Council member and Bank of Italy Governor 
Mario Draghi presents annual report - 0830 GMT 
  
 SUNDAY, JUNE 1 
 FRANKFURT- 10th Anniversary of the founding of the European 
Central Bank. Link: www.ecb.int- 
  
 CANNES, France- ECB Executive Board member Jose Manuel 
Gonzalez-Paramo to give keynote speech at the Global ABS 2008 
conference (1600 GMT) (to June 4). Link: http://secure.imn.org/- 
 
 JUNE 2008 
ATHENS- ECB governing council member and governor at the Bank of 
Greece Nicholas Garganas to step down in June.- 
  
 MONDAY, JUNE 2 
 FRANKFURT- EuroGroup Finance Ministers meeting.- 
  
 FRANKFURT- Ceremony to mark 10th anniversary of the European 
Central Bank. Speakers include ECB President Jean-Claude 
Trichet, European Parliament President Hasn-Gert Poettering, 
European Union Council President Janez Jansa, European 
Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Eurogroup President 
Jean-Claude Juncker, German Chancellor Angela Merkel (1330-1530 
GMT)- 
  
 TUESDAY, JUNE 3 
 PARIS- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 
(OECD) Forum 2008. 'Reform to Perform - Towards a more 
prosperous, stable and sustainable future' and Climate Change, 
Prosperity and Stability (to June 4). Speakers include European 
Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet, WTO Director-General 
Pascal Lamy, and OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria- 
  
 LUXEMBOURG- EU Economic and Finance Ministers (ECOFIN) meeting.- 
  
 THURSDAY, JUNE 5 
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council meeting, followed by interest 
rate announcement 1145 GMT. News conference follows at 1230 
GMT.- 
  
 FRIDAY, JUNE 6 
 FRANKFURT- ECB Executive Board member Juergen Stark addresses a 
FORUM institute conference on "The subprime crisis: challenges 
for monetary policy" (0715 GMT)- 
  
 LONDON- ECB Governing Council member Axel Weber speaks at 
Financial Markets Group public lecture on "Financial Market 
Stability"- 1700 GMT 
  
 TUESDAY, JUNE 10 
 HELSINKI- ECB Governing Council member Erkki Liikanen to speak 
at a Bank of Finland quarterly event (0800 GMT).- 
  
 WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11 
 MONTREAL, Canada- ECB Governing Council member Christian Noyer, 
IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn to speak at an 
economic forum.- 
  
 THURSDAY, JUNE 12 
 FRANKFURT- ECB publishes its monthly Bulletin - 0800 GMT 
  
 THURSDAY, JUNE 19 
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council and General Council meeting. No 
interest rate announcements scheduled. Any announcement about 
other issues to be released at 1230 GMT.- 
  
   
    WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25 
 BRUSSELS- ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet testifies before the 
European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs 
(0930-1230 GMT).- 
  
 THURSDAY, JULY 3 
 FRANKFURT- ECB Governing Council meeting, followed by interest 
rate announcement 1145 GMT. News conference follows at 1230 
GMT. 
  
 SUNDAY, JULY 6 
 AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France- (TENTATIVE - CHK DATES) Aix-en-Provence 
- Economic Forum 2008- 1345 GMT 
  
 THURSDAY, JULY 10 
 FRANKFURT- ECB publishes its monthly Bulletin - 0800 GMT 
  
  
  
     
     
     
    ------Main (7-Day)--------    ----Long-term (90-Day)-----  
       Announce- Allot-    Settle-   Announce-  Allot-  Settle- 
          ment     ment      ment       ment     ment     ment 
 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------May                                                         02 
           05       06       07 
           12       13       14 
           19       20       21 
           26       27       28         27        28        29 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------June       02       03       04 
           09       10       11 
           16       17       18 
           23       24       25         24        25        26            30 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------July                01       02 
           07       08       09 
           14       15       16             
           21       22       23             
           28       29       30         29        30        31 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------August     04       05       06 
           11       12       13 
           18       19       20 
           25       26       27         26        27        28 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------September  01       02       03 
           08       09       10 
           15       16       17 
           22       23       24         23        24        25            29 
      30 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------October                      01 
           06       07       08 
           13       14       15                  
           20       21       22 
           27       28       29         28        29        30 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------November   03       04       05 
           10       11       12 
           17       18       19 
           24       25       26         25        26        27 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------December   01       02       03 
           08       09       10 
           15       16       17         16        17        18 
           19       22       23 
           29       30       30 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
SOURCE: European Central Bank (ECB). 
LINK: http://www.ecb.int/events/calendar/caleu/html/index.en.html 
  

*TOP NEWS* Central banks

Reuters: [2008-05-16 14:52:00]

............................................................... 
For news and data, double-click on the codes in brackets. 
Access to some items may depend on subscription level. 
.............................................................. 
> ***SNAPSHOT - WORLD KEY OFFICIAL INTEREST RATES***  [INT/RATE] 
> FACTBOX-Global interest res                     [GLOBAL/INT] 
............................................................... 
 ECB 
> ECB's Liebscher-supports steady hand policy on rates[nWEB5577] 
> ECB's Mersch says sees slight Q2 growth slowdown    [nWEB5569] 
> Constancio says no risk of European recession     [nL16580858] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-ECB's Constancio says hard to forecast [nL16845591] 
> HIGHLIGHTS-Brussels Economic Forum discussions    [nL16501453] 
> EU business not complaining about ECB - employers [nL16103682] 
> Austria sees no cause for worry on ECB collateral [nL16837718] 
 
 FED 
> Fed's Lockhart sees hope that inflation slowing   [nN16384387] 
> BBA discusses Libor with c.banks as review nears  [nL16803212] 
     
 OTHER CENTRAL BANK NEWS    
> Danish c.bank ups leading interest rate by 10 bps [nL16279785] 
> Icelandic central bank wins Nordic peers' support [nL16873331] 
> Hungary cbankers split over rates, all see risk   [nL16138867] 
> Hungary cbank to defend CPI goal, credibility     [nL16265637] 
> Czech c.bank sees gradual crown rise in 2008, 2009[nPRG000808] 
> TEXT-Minutes from Czech c.bank May 7 board meeting[nL16243359] 
> Thai c.bank seen keeping rates steady next week    [nBKK52886] 
> Mexico seen holding key interest rate          [ID:nN15306407] 
............................................................... 
> The outlook for Federal Reserve policy             [FED/AHEAD] 
> Reuters coverage of Basel II accord            [ID:nL10281706] 
............................................................... 
 UPCOMING CENTRAL BANK MEETINGS, EVENTS 
| Fed              June 24/25 | BOJ                  May 19/20 | 
| ECB                  June 5 | BoE                   June 4/5 | 
| BOC                 June 10 | RBA                     June 3 | 
| Riksbank*            July 2 | RBNZ                    June 5 | 
| Swiss Nat Bank      June 19 | Norges Bank             May 28 | 
 * Announcement July 3               
 
> Major central bank events                          [CEN/DIARY] 
> Diary of emerging market central bank events        [CEN/EMRG] 
................................................................ 
 REUTERS POLLS                                                
| US Fed Funds rate  [FED/R]  | ECB rates           [ECB/INT] | 
| British rates    [BOE/INT]  | Canadian rates       [CA/INT] | 
| Japanese rates   [BOJ/INT]  | Chinese rates      [CNY/POLL] | 
| Australian rates  [AU/INT]  | Swiss rates         [SNB/INT] | 
| Swedish rates     [SE/INT]  | South African rates  [ZA/INT] | 
| Top poll news      [POLL/] 
 ............................................................... 
 LATEST NEWS ON CENTRAL BANKS 
| Central bank news     [CEN] | U.S. Federal Reserve     [FED] | 
| Bank of Japan         [BOJ] | European Central Bank    [ECB] | 
| Swiss National Bank   [SNB] | Bank of England          [BOE] | 
| All forex news        [FRX] | Economic indicators      [ECI] | 
| Central Bank index<CENTRAL1>| Central bank rates<KEYRATES/1> | 
T ............................................................... 
 CENTRAL BANKERS' COMMENTS 
| Federal Reserve[FED/QUOTES] | ECB                [ECB/QUOTES]| 
| Bank of England[BOE/QUOTES] | Swiss National Bank[SNB/QUOTES]| 
| Sweden Riksbank[RIK/QUOTES] | 
 ............................................................... 
 DIARIES 
| Fed diary       [FED/DIARY] |  ECB diary         [ECB/DIARY] | 
| Today's FX market[MI/DIARY] |  Financial events  [KEY/DIARY] | 
| Diary index     [IND/DIARY] |  Polling diary    [POLL/DIARY] | 
 .............................................................. 
 WEB ADDRESSES 
 Federal Reserve: http://www.federalreserve.gov/ 
 Bank of Japan: http://www.boj.or.jp/en/index.htm 
 European Central Bank: http://www.ecb.int/index.html 
 Bank of England: http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/ 
 Bank of Canada: http://www.bankofcanada.ca/en/ 
 Swiss National Bank: http://www.snb.ch 
 .............................................................. 
 ((David Stamp; London Treasury Desk +44 207 542 7716)) 
  

INTERVIEW-Cyprus finmin says ECB rates policy sensible

Reuters: [2008-05-16 14:29:00]

By Michele Kambas

NICOSIA, May 16 (Reuters) - European Central Bank monetary policy is sensible in present circumstances although euro zone growth forecasts could be revised lower if U.S. financial turmoil deepens, Cyprus's finance minister said on Friday.

"The euro zone had shown anazing resilience to what is happening initially. But if it goes on and is deeper than most people think, then certainly there are risks to euro zone growth projections and there is a likelihood they will be adjusted downwards," Finance Minister Charilaos Stavrakis told Reuters in an interview.

The ECB has kept interest rates on hold at 4.0 percent since last June and has resisted calls to consider rate cuts as a means of halting slowdown risks. French ministers have been particularly critical in the past but less so in recent months as euro zone inflation hit an all-time peak of 3.6 percent in March before easing to 3.3 percent in April.

"It is a sensible policy given present circumstances," Stavrakis said.

While acknowledging inflation was a concern, Stavrakis said it could not be isolated.

"We should not ignore other equally important economic variables like economic growth. You cannot just focus on inflation and ignore everything else," he said.

The European Commission has forecast euro zone growth will slow to 1.7 percent this year from 2.6 percent in 2007.

The euro, which has risen strongly in recent months, will eventually reach its normal equilibrium against the dollar, Stavrakis said, adding that economic fundamentals would prevail in the long term.

CYPRUS ECONOMY

In Cyprus, which joined the euro zone in 2008, inflation was running at 4.3 percent in April. The introduction of the euro on Jan. 1 added between 0.2 and 0.3 percentage points to CPI, though recent surges in the price of crude represented about 50 percent of the recent spike, Stavrakis said.

He said he expected inflation to moderate to "slightly less" than 4.0 percent for the year, compared to 2.2 percent in 2007. The government preferred to adopt "targeted policies" to help those in need rather than state subsidies, which could inhibit the functioning of the market.

Economic growth was expected to decelerate from last year's 4.4 percent to a central forecast of 3.75 percent. "There is a natural deceleration caused by a slowdown in the global economy," Stavrakis said.

Cyprus has been largely absent from the international bond markets for several years, redeeming its public debt with fiscal surpluses which reached 3.3 percent of gross domestic product in 2007 and is scheduled to fall to 0.5 percent in 2008.

The Republic had no specific plans to tap the bond markets this year.

"Right now the spreads are not attractive even for good-rated countries like Cyprus," he said. "But certainly at some point, once spreads reach more normal levels, we may be tempted to go with a jumbo deal to create quite a lot of liquidity on the Cyprus paper."

He said this was "possible" this year.

Stavrakis, a banker who was appointed by Cyprus's communist-led government which won elections in February, said the administration was not dogmatic about privatisations. The prospect of large corporations like the state-owned electricity and telecom companies being privatised was minimal, he said.

But he said the administration could not rule out smaller privatisations, including the Cyprus bourse which is now a semi-government organisation.

"There is some thought of privatisations of other state companies or assets which have less strategic importance to the economy ... a classic case could be the Cyprus Stock Exchange," he said.

(Editing by Stephen Nisbet) ((michele.kambas@reuters.com; 357 22469607; Reuters messaging michele.kambas.reuters.com@reuters.net ))

Keywords: EUROZONE CYPRUS/

Next: *TOP NEWS* Central banks