Gov't likely to have a tough time buying back the bulk of the foreign debt

Monetary Policy Council (RPP) member Dariusz Rosati did not exclude the possibility of increasing the $1-1.5 billion loan which the National Bank of Poland (NBP) would grant to the government to buy its foreign debt, if the terms of repaying the debt to the Paris Club turned out to be particularly good. "The present amount is the effect of the value of Brady bonds, which are in circulation. This is the part of the debt which can be easily bought. However, if the government decided to undertake a larger operation, then it would have to reduce its debt to the Paris Club, which requires reaching an agreement with all 30 states which lend money to it," explained Rosati. He added that if the government succeeded, then the NBP loan would be increased, but the NBP believes that the current level of currency reserves should not be substantially reduced. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 23; www.onet.pl) M.M.