IMF FORMALLY APPROVES RUSSIAN LOAN.

The International Monetary Fund gave formal approval yesterday to a three-year extended loan to Russia worth $10.2 billion. (BBC World Service, March 27) This is the second largest loan in the IMF’s history. The decision is seen as a vote of confidence in Russia’s reform policies and in the leadership of President Boris Yeltsin. Russian Central Bank chairman Sergei Dubinin said yesterday that the loan would have a "stabilizing impact" on the Russian currency market. "Our currency market will be aware that there is a permanent source of currency coming in at a rate of $300 million to $400 million a month," he said. (Interfax, March 26) It is also hoped that the loan will act as a catalyst to attract foreign investment to Russia.

Russian Nuclear Experts Foresee New Cold War.