Kazakhstan does not see necessity of administrative measures

/IRBIS, Jan.11, 00/ According to REUTERS, which cites Grigory Marchenko, head of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, the Bank considers the administrative measures of currency market regulation as inexpedient. At the same time, as Marchenko said, last news from Russia, including the news concerning sales of 100% the foreign exchange earnings, have an negative influence on the Kazakhstan exchange market. Grigory Marchenko considers that Kazakhstan today essentially differs from Russia by its ability to involve means through the issue of State Securities and direct foreign investments from four sources: international financial organizations, international capital markets, local banks, and pension funds at the expense. Last year Kazakhstan not without difficulty managed to conclude the next three-years program with IMF to the sum of $453 million, to receive the $175 million credit from the World bank, and to place Eurobonds in volume of $300 millions. Marchenko has told that Kazakhstan with its 15 million population has essentially better position than Russia, concerning attraction of the direct foreign investments per head. For nine months of 1999 Kazakhstan has involved $1.14 billion and under the National Bank's forecasts the total sum for 1999 can reach $1.3 billion and exceed a last year's parameter. Kazakhstan in November 1999 has cancelled the obligatory sale of 50% of the foreign exchange earnings, which was introduced as a temporary measure at transition to the floating tenge rate in April, 1999.