SARAJEVO, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Bosnia's autonomous Serb Republic raised 25.7 million Bosnian marka ($14 million), slightly more than it targeted, to help bridge a budget gap at an auction of seven-year bonds on Monday.
The yield was lower than at the last sale in September.
Bids for the bonds, which carry an annual coupon of 4.5 percent, amounted to 45.2 million marka against 25 million marka on offer, the finance ministry said. They sold at a weighted average yield of 4.01 percent, down from 4.5 percent at the last auction. The proceeds of the sale were intended to help the region plug its budget deficit after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank withheld funds pending economic reforms.
Bosnia's two autonomous regions, the Serb Republic and the Bosniak-Croat Federation, have a combined budget deficit of about 1 billion marka and need cash to help cover their financing needs.
In September, the IMF approved a 553 million euro ($591.99 million) loan programme to support economic reforms and has already disbursed 79.2 million euros to the two regions.
But in order to win the next instalment of about 80 million euros, Bosnia must pass a law raising excise taxes while the regions must adopt new banking laws and their respective 2017 budgets. ($1 = 0.9341 euros)
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt) ((daria.sito-sucic@thomsonreuters.com; +38733 295 484; Reuters Messaging: daria.sito-sucic.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
The yield was lower than at the last sale in September.
Bids for the bonds, which carry an annual coupon of 4.5 percent, amounted to 45.2 million marka against 25 million marka on offer, the finance ministry said. They sold at a weighted average yield of 4.01 percent, down from 4.5 percent at the last auction. The proceeds of the sale were intended to help the region plug its budget deficit after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank withheld funds pending economic reforms.
Bosnia's two autonomous regions, the Serb Republic and the Bosniak-Croat Federation, have a combined budget deficit of about 1 billion marka and need cash to help cover their financing needs.
In September, the IMF approved a 553 million euro ($591.99 million) loan programme to support economic reforms and has already disbursed 79.2 million euros to the two regions.
But in order to win the next instalment of about 80 million euros, Bosnia must pass a law raising excise taxes while the regions must adopt new banking laws and their respective 2017 budgets. ($1 = 0.9341 euros)
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt) ((daria.sito-sucic@thomsonreuters.com; +38733 295 484; Reuters Messaging: daria.sito-sucic.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
