Shuki Oren is considering debt swap deals.
"The reason the dollar is falling is because of the dollar itself. I suggest that the Israeli government does not presume to influence the dollar worldwide. There is no place for the government to intervene in the foreign exchange market. That's the responsibility of the Bank of Israel, and it is dealing with the matter," Ministry of Finance Accountant General Shuki Oren told "Globes".
That said, Oren confirmed a "Globes" report from Monday that he was considering currency hedging debt swap deals.
The Ministry of Finance made precisely that kind of intervention a year ago, when the shekel-dollar exchange rate fell to NIS 3.35/$, and it hedged using swap deals on Israel's foreign debt. Those deals supported the shekel-dollar exchange rate and simultaneously reduced the country's debt in shekel terms. The ministry hedged $2 billion in debt in those deals.
The Ministry of Finance is apparently set to repeat the transactions to the tune of $1 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 3, 2009
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2009