Slovak crown steady vs euro, eyes c.banker's comments

...traders said the unit was likely to 
remain within its well-established range in the coming days. 
    The crown traded at 33.390 per euro  as of 0750 
GMT, compared with Tuesday's close of 33.385. 
    "Quiet trading seen in the past days is expected to 
continue," said VUB bank trader Laco Benedek. "The crown should 
drift in a range of 33.300-33.450 per euro, taking cues from the 
region." 
    Central Bank board member Ludovit Odor is expected to 
address a conference later on Wednesday, and dealers said his 
remarks might move the crown. 
    The unit fell to 33.450 per euro on Tuesday, hit by the 
Polish zloty's weakness and remarks by Slovak Finance Minister 
Jan Pociatek. It recovered later as the region rebounded on 
benign U.S. March core inflation data. 
    "Suggestions from Finance Minister Pociatek that the CPI may 
comply with Maastricht criteria in the second half of 2007 need 
corroboration from the NBS's updated forecasts, but support 
expectations of another 25 basis-point rate cut in April," said 
Lucy Bethell, strategist at Royal Bank of Scotland. 
    "Another cut will help dampen enthusiasm for the crown, as 
will the threat of further intervention on the dips," she said. 
    The NBS has been battling the firming currency over the past 
months with liquidity injections and heavy interventions 
estimated at 2.5 billion euros in total. The bank also cut its 
key rate by 25 basis points to 4.5 percent last month. 
    The central bank rejected some bids at its regular two-week 
repo tender on Tuesday, leaving the market awash with excess 
funds for the sixth week in a row. The NBS next meets to discuss 
policy settings and new inflation prognosis on April 27. 
------------------ MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0750 GMT ----------------- 
Crown/euro  33.390 vs 33.385 on Tuesday (-0.01 pct) 
Crown/dollar   at 24.565 vs 24.660 (+0.39) 
5-yr govt bond  yield 4.196/4.047 vs 4.082/3.682 pct 
7-yr govt bond  yield 4.288/4.087 vs 4.361/4.141 pct 
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