Moldova will use US$180m from IMF to cover budget deficit

Moldova will use the US$180 million allocated by the International Monetary Fund to cover the budget deficit. This is stipulated in a bill on the use of the Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), which was approved by the executive. “Every country that is a member of the IMF can use the Special Drawing Rights depending on the internal necessities. We will use them to cover the large budget deficit,” said Moldova's Minister of Finance Veaceslav Negruta, quoted by Info- Prim Neo In order to alleviate the consequences of the world economic crisis, the IMF proposed allocating SDRs, which are equivalent to US$250 billion, to Moldova. The SDRs are offered to countries without imposing certain conditions. The beneficiary country pays a quarterly interest and a yearly commission. The loan is repayable in five years, with a grace period of 3.25 years. In August, Moldova was allocated General Drawing Rights, while in September - Special Drawing Rights intended for countries whose economies have been seriously affected by the crisis. The amount allocated totaled US$180 million, which is now in the accounts of the National Bank. Veaceslav Negruta said that the four-quarter interest and the yearly commission in 2010 will be 5.2 million lei.