Slovak crown firms vs euro, more gains seen

    The Slovak crown set off 
stronger against the euro on Wednesday, and dealers expected 
more gains in the near term despite the central bank's (NBS) 
attempts to dent the unit's strength. 
    The currency traded at 34.365 per euro  as of 0910 
GMT, compared with 34.435 late on Tuesday. 
    "Foreign banks are likely to push the crown towards stronger 
levels," said Tatra Banka dealer Milan Cavojec. 
    Last week the NBS knocked the crown off its record high of 
34.05 per euro with a direct intervention. The bank rejected a 
part of bids in its weekly liquidity-draining tender on Tuesday 
to keep the firming unit in check. 
    "The crown marches again to 34.3 per euro, leaving the risk 
of forex intervention open in the near term," Lucia Steklacova, 
senior economist at ING in Bratislava, wrote in a note. 
    "We think that the first round would come only closer to the 
34.0 per euro mark." 
    The crown is the best performing currency in central Europe, 
gaining 9.7 percent against the euro over the past year, buoyed 
by investors' interest in emerging markets and Slovakia's record 
economic growth. 
----------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0910 GMT ----------------- 
 Crown/euro  34.365 vs 34.435 on Tuesday (+0.16 pct) 
 Crown/dollar   25.879 vs 25.938 (+0.23 pct) 
5-yr govt bond  yield unchanged at 4.374/4.173 
8-yr govt bond  yield 4.216/4.017 vs 4.251/4.101 
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[BRATISLAVA/Reuters/Finance.cz]