Russia to borrow 5tr rubles from modernized market

The Russian Finance Ministry will borrow some 5 trillion rubles ($181 billion) from foreign buyers on the domestic market to cover soaring budget spending in 2012-2014, Kommersant business daily said on Monday quoting the ministry's Debt Policy Guidelines for 2012-2014. Prior to 2008 the ministry had borrowed some 0.2 trillion rubles per year from the markets. The new debt will boost Russia's debt from the current nine percent to 17 percent of GDP in 2014. Japan's debt/GDP ratio stands at 220 percent, the U.S. at 92 percent and Brazil's at 66 percent. As borrowing internationally is expensive, the ministry plans to cover 90 percent of its budget deficit by borrowing from foreign investors on the domestic markets, where the government will introduce international depositary and clearing systems, allow OFZ bonds to be traded on the corporate stock market and issue primarily medium and long-term securities with a fixed coupon rate. Geithner tells Obama he will remain as treasury secretary Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, a central figure in the U.S. government’s bailouts of Wall Street banks and efforts to raise the debt limit, told President Barack Obama that he intends to remain in his job. Geithner, 49, will stay on at least through the 2012 election, according to an administration official who was not authorized to comment publicly. Geithner, the last remaining member of Obama’s original economic team, made his announcement after months of speculation over his future. He told White House officials this year that he was considering leaving once a deal to raise the nation’s borrowing limit deal was reached. Obama signed an increase in the limit on Aug. 2. Romania cbank cuts 2011 inflation forecast to 4.6 pct y/y Romania's central bank expects annual inflation to slow to 4.6 percent at the end of 2011 due to a good harvest and as the impact of higher value added tax washes out, its governor said on Monday. The central bank sees annual inflation at 3.5 percent at the end of 2012, Mugur Isarescu told a news conference, in remarks which may indicate leeway to cut interest rates next year. The central bank had previously forecast 5.1 percent annual inflation at the end of 2011 and 3.6 percent at the end of 2012.