Slovak crown continues record trend in early trade

    BRATISLAVA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The Slovak crown <EURSKK=> 
touched a new lifetime high against the euro in early trade on 
Thursday, extending the past week's bull run buoyed by robust 
economy growth, a ratings upgrade and a positive regional mood. 
    The crown traded at 36.655 to the euro as of 0800 GMT, a 
touch below its new record of 36.645 to the euro hit just after 
the open. It closed at 36.660 late on Wednesday. 
    "There is persisting interest from abroad to buy the crown. 
There is nothing to weaken it. The 36.200 per euro level could 
be the new target," one foreign bank dealer said. 
    The crown has broken records on a daily basis over the past 
week, driven by the approval of the 2007 state budget draft, a 
ratings upgrade by Moody's on Slovak government debt and capital 
returning back to the emerging markets, dealers said. 
    Market watchers said they saw room for more crown firming if 
bigger central European markets do not weaken sharply. 
    The crown is now trading some 5 percent above its central 
parity withing the Exchange Rate Mechanism 2 (ERM-2), which 
Slovakia joined late last year. 
----------------MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0800 GMT------------------- 
Crown/Euro <EURSKK=> 36.655 vs 36.660 on Wednesday (+0.01 pct) 
Crown/Dollar <SKK=>  29.190 vs 29.304 (+0.39 pct) 
5-yr govt bond <SK5YT=RR> yield 4.749/4.550 vs 4.687/4.486 
9-yr govt bond <SK9YT=RR> yield 4.568/4.368 vs 4.471/4.272 
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 ((Reporting by Martin Santa, editing by Cheryl Juckes; Reuters 
Messaging: martin.santa.reuters.com@reuters.net; +421 5341 
8402)) 
  Keywords: MARKETS SLOVAKIA CROWN OPEN