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Croatia, Bulgaria and Macedonia denied a report in a German daily on Friday that they were among at least 10 eastern Europe states in talks with the IMF over billion-euro emergency loans for their ailing economies.
The report, which put the euro [EUR=
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] under pressure in Asian trade on Friday, cited sources close to the IMF naming the three countries — all potential candidates for aid but none having requested any — as those who had asked the IMF for help.
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"A decision on the requests will be made as soon as possible," Handelsblatt
It also said Ukraine, Serbia, Romania, Belarus and Latvia were hoping for an earlier payout or an increase of already approved funding.
They have all already agreed multi-billion euro loans from the Fund and were followed by Bosnia this week, which secured a $1.6 billion deal with the Fund this week.
Handelsblatt said that Bulgaria's incoming government, likely to be led by the centre-right GERB party, which won a July 5 parliamentary election, planned to start talks soon with the IMF about a standby credit line, citing local media.
In Sofia, the outgoing Socialist-led government and the GERB party, both said they had not opened talks with the IMF.
"There are no talks with the IMF. Definitely," a Bulgarian finance ministry spokeswoman said. "To have such talks (in the time) between two governments would not be serious."
Biser Boev, tipped to become the next economy minister in the new Bulgarian government yet to be formed, said the next government will first slash spending and ask the IMF to audit its budget revision.
But it would wait on aid. "Our intentions have not changed," Boev told Reuters.
On Croatia, Handelsblatt said central bank governor Zeljko Rohatinski believed it was increasingly likely that Zagreb would need IMF support, after the central bank pumped 5 billion euros into the economy.
But Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said no request had been made.
"Croatia knows what it has to do to overcome the crisis and we have not asked for an IMF loan," she said.
Macedonia's outgoing finance minister, Trajko Slaveski, also said his country had not entered into loan negotiations.
Handelsblatt said a majority of the Fund's top brass was supporting the loans given the impact of the financial crisis on those countries.
It also said Hungary's government, which took a bailout in October, had not yet decided whether it needs additional funds.
"A decision on the requests will be made as soon as possible," Handelsblatt quoted an unidentified source as saying, adding that a decision on payouts is usually reached within a week after the application.
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