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In Prague, bond traders refer to it simply as "the 795", often followed by a weary sigh. The Kr5 billion ($143 million) bond issued by the Czech ministry of finance in February has achieved a degree of notoriety usually reserved for only the most ground-breaking of fixed-income deals. Unfortunately, the 795 has gained its status for all the wrong reasons - doubt has been thrown on its maturity date - and this has brought into question the procedure by which the Czech government raises cash in international capital markets.
At the January 29 auction of the bond there was no hint of the trouble to come. The five-year issue attracted healthy interest from both domestic and international investors and it looked set to be another in the long list of successful deals. But the day after the auction was completed, the first rumours of a problem began to circulate among Prague traders. Attention focused on the bond's five-year maturity.
The source of the rumours was the Czech central bank.