FURTHER TERM FOR POEHL LIKELY, BONN SOURCES SAY
Karl Otto Poehl is likely to be re-elected
President of the Bundesbank when his current term in office
expires at the end of this year, government sources said.
    They were commenting on a report in Der Spiegel news
magazine which said Chancellor Helmut Kohl had decided to keep
Poehl in office for another eight years.
    Government spokesman Friedhelm Ost had no comment on the
report, other than to say that the subject of the Bundesbank
presidency was not currently under discussion. Der Spiegel said
that, because Poehl is a member of the Social Democratic Party
(SPD), Kohl had not taken the decision lightly.
    Poehl has been Bundesbank chief since January 1, 1980,
while Kohl's conservative/liberal coalition has held power
since 1982. Der Spiegel said Kohl would have preferred to offer
the post to a member of his Christian Democratic Union (CDU).
 REUTER
