Slovak crown touches 5-mth highs, more gains seen

    BRATISLAVA, Oct 5 (Reuters) - The Slovak crown <EURSKK=> 
firmed to a fresh five-month high to the euro on early Thursday, 
and dealers said it had potential to firm further in the coming 
days amid a wave of bullish sentiment. 
    The crown traded at 37.165 to the euro as of 0650 GMT, up 
0.03 percent from late on Wednesday. 
    "The crown might go even stronger in the very near term if 
the regional climate does not worsen. It's also being supported 
by the interest rate differential versus the euro," ING Bank 
wrote in a market note. 
    The Slovak central bank delivered a surprise 25 basis points 
hike last week, putting the key two-week repo rate at 4.75 
percent, as it continued its monetary tightening to keep the 
country's 2009 euro entry goal on track. 
    The move gives Slovakia a 175 basis point differential with 
the key euro zone rate, which is expected to hike by 25 basis 
points to 3.25 percent later on Thursday. 
----------------MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0650 GMT------------------- 
Crown/Euro <EURSKK=> 37.165 vs 37.175 (+0.03 pct) on Wednesday 
Crown/Dollar <SKK=>  29.252 vs 29.300 (+0.16) 
5-yr govt bond <SK5YT=RR> yield 4.922/4.622 
9-yr govt bond <SK9YT=RR> yield 4.400/4.340 
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 ((Reporting by Martin Santa, editing by Chris Pizzey; 
martin.santa@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: 
martin.santa.reuters.com@reuters.net; +421-2 5341 8402)) 
  Keywords: MARKETS SLOVAKIA CROWN OPEN