Czech crown little changed,ignores confidence vote

...of confidence late on Friday.

The unit traded at 27.795 to the euro at 0915 GMT, a touch down from levels on Friday afternoon, ahead of the confidence vote.

The centre-right coalition government led by Mirek Topolanek falls one seat short of a parliamentary majority but squeezed through the vote thanks to abstentions by two leftist opposition rebels, ending nearly eight months of political deadlock after an inconclusive election last June.

"The crown did not react when we had no government, and now it is equally not reacting to the fact we have one," said one trader at a foreign bank in Prague.

He said the crown was following the euro/dollar and regional currencies, but also was on a back foot due to negative interest rate spread versus the euro which makes it a funding currency for players taking positions in assets in the region.

Analysts have said the government could lack the power to push through its plans to reform the welfare, pension, health and tax systems, and the country could still see an early election ahead of regular polls due in 2010. ----------------- MARKET SNAPSHOT AT 0914 GMT ----------------- Crown/euro at 27.795 (-0.04 pct)

Crown/dollar at 21.417 (+0.02 pct)

5-yr CZK/EUR mid yield spread -62 bps (vs -62) 10-yr CZK/EUR mid yield spread -24 bps (vs -24)

Current levels versus prior domestic close at 1500 GMT ---------------------------------------------------------------

[PRAGUE/Reuters/Finance.cz]