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Ukraine's parliament passes legislation for IMF loan

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Ukraine's parliament has passed a set of laws aimed at stabilizing the financial system in order to meet the International Monetary Fund's conditions for a $16.5 billion standby loan.
MOSCOW, November 1 (RIA Novosti) - Ukraine's parliament has passed a set of laws aimed at stabilizing the financial system in order to meet the International Monetary Fund's conditions for a $16.5 billion standby loan.

Lawmakers in the Supreme Rada passed the package with 243 votes in favor and none against on Friday.

The IMF announced the emergency loan on Sunday, to help the country through the financial crisis, but demanded that Ukraine first pass new legislation to stabilize the economy and modify banking regulations.

The parties led by President Viktor Yushchenko and his former ally Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko backed the legislation, while the Party of Regions, led by ex-premier Viktor Yanukovych, abstained from the vote.

Under the new laws, a national stabilization fund will be set up to help struggling banks repay their foreign debt. The government will also provide more extensive guarantees for deposits in banks.

Speaking after the vote was passed, Tymoshenko said: "I consider it a great success for Ukraine, that at such an important moment we were able to do this. Other countries take hundreds of billions. We kept to a minimal sum, and perhaps, we will not even use it," she said.

The loan "will just sit there, so that each bank feels that it is protected, so that it can function as normal."

The financial crisis has seen Ukrainians rush to withdraw their savings, fearing banking collapses. More than $3 billion dollars were pulled out of banks in October.

Ukraine's economy has been hard hit by the global credit crunch, along with the falling price of steel, the key national export.

The country's stock exchange has lost around 70% of its value, while the national currency, the hryvnia, hit a record low of 7.2 to the dollar on Wednesday. It has since recovered slightly, to around 5.9, compared to 4.5 in July this year.

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