Yugoslavia has reached an agreementwith Western creditors on refinancing a portion of its 19.7
billion dollar hard currency debt.
    The official Tanjug news agency said the agreement was
reached in Paris today in talks between Yugoslav delegation
headed by Finance Minister Svetozar Rikanovic and 16 Western
creditor countries, but it gave no precise figures for the
amount to be rescheduled.
    However, before the talks began, Tanjug said the agreement
should cover 1.6 billion dollars of debt due this year and 3.5
billion due in 1988.
    The agreement covered a second phase of multi-year
refinancing of Yugoslavia's debt, based on a protocol signed in
May last year, which provided for the enhanced monitoring of
economic trends in Yugoslavia by International Monetary Fund.
    Tanjug said the agreement was reached after hearing the
IMF's report on the state of Yugoslav economy and a +long and
lively debate between creditors and members of the Yugoslav
delegation.+
    It said the talks with commercial bank creditors on
realisation of the second phase of Yugoslavia's multi-year debt
refinancing will follow in April this year.
 REUTER
