KUSTRAK ON NEW STAND-BY ARRANGEMENT AND LOANS

WASHINGTON, Sept 28 (Hina) - Croatia's Deputy Finance Minister Damir Kustrak said in Washington on Saturday that talks between Croatia's delegation visiting Washington and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank would focus on a new stand-by arrangement and a second drawdown for structural adjustment. The delegation will also inform commercial banks about Croatia's plans and financial needs for next year, he added. #L# An IMF mission will arrive in Croatia on October 24, when agreement on the new stand-by arrangement should be reached. Drawing rights would be smaller than those from the current arrangement but Croatia would not use them as it did not use the current drawing rights. "We need the arrangement as a reference for talks with other creditors," Kustrak said. The Croatian delegation, which is attending a session of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington, will also discuss using the second drawdown of a structural adjustment loan. So far, Croatia has used 200 million dollars and should use the remaining 100 million next year. During talks with several big commercial banks the delegation intends to present the Croatian government's plans for next year and loan requirements. The loans are needed mostly to cover the planned deficit, for which, according to unofficial sources, Croatia would need more than half a billion euros. The Croatian delegation expects that the plenary session of the IMF and the World Bank would focus on problems of over-indebted undeveloped countries and the effect of the economic crisis and recession in the United States on the world economy. (hina) rml