FRENCH TREASURY TO REPAY 680 MLN FRANCS OF DEBT
The French treasury has decided to repay
680 mln francs of debt issued before 1950, the Finance Ministry
said.
    Seven issues, accounting for 0.13 pct of total state
domestic debt, would be redeemed by the Caisse d Amortisement
de la Dette Publique, the national debt amortisation fund, a
Ministry statement said.
    The Ministry said the debt rationalisation exercise,
similar to one carried out in 1958 and 1959, would take out of
circulation old issues which were expensive to manage and
difficult to trade because of their highly complex structure.
    Technical details of the operation would be announced in
the next few days.
    The securities to be redeemed would be the three pct
perpetual rente, five pct perpetual rente, four pct 1941-1960
redeemable rentes, 3.5 pct 1942-1952 redeemable rentes, three
pct 1942-1955 redeemable rentes, three pct 1945-1954 redeemable
rentes, and 4.5 pct 1933-1960 redeemable treasury bonds.
    The ministry said the operation would mainly benefit
long-term holders of the issues, mainly small investors and
small communes.
    The issues were difficult to trade because they comprised
securities of variable nominal value, it noted.
 REUTER
