Russia not planning to place more Eurobonds in any currencies this year - Storchak
ASTANA. May 20 (Interfax) - Russia does not plan to place any more Eurobonds denominated in rubles or other currencies this year, Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak told journalists.
"No, not for now," Storchak said as to whether Russia would place more ruble-denominated Eurobonds this year.
Regarding Eurobonds denominated in other currencies, Storchak said that no such issues are planned. "The minister has said that we will not be borrowing [on foreign markets]," he said. The Finance Ministry does not consider issuing ruble-denominated Eurobonds as foreign borrowing, he added.
"That's correct. We will place additionally within the OFZ curve," he said.
Russia has placed 50 billion rubles worth of additional Eurobonds, he said, the first time Eurobond placement in the national currency has exceeded initial issue volume (40 billion rubles).
Asked if issuing ruble-denominated Eurobonds was a higher priority for Russian than issuing in other currencies down the road, Storchak said that would likely not be the case. "I don't think so. The priority is always diversification [in borrowing]," he said.
The creation of a Russian Financial Agency is still on the agenda, and the Finance Ministry and government are working through the legal details, he said. "This has not been removed from the agenda. We are still working on the legal details," Storchak said.