COPENHAGEN, July 2 (Reuters) - Denmark's foreign exchange reserves rose by 5.0 billion crowns to 330.3 billion ($62.59 billion) in June against economists' expectation of no change, central bank data showed on Thursday.
The central bank, whose main lending rate stands at 1.55 percent, signalled no change in interest rates.
A Reuters survey of six economists gave a central estimate for foreign exchange reserves to remain steady at 325.3 billion crowns, unchanged from May. The numbers exclude central government foreign loan transactions.
Denmark belongs to the European Union but not the euro zone. Its long-standing policy of maintaining a stable crown against the euro means that the central bank shifts key interest rates for the sole purpose of keeping the crown around its central parity of 7.46038 per euro.
The central bank's net purchases of foreign exchange -- which includes items such as interest accrued on the reserves and changes in banks' euro-denominated deposits at the Nationalbank -- totalled 8.2 billion crowns in June, and the central government repaid 3.3 billion in foreign debt.
'In June ... Nationalbank's net purchase of foreign exchange due to intervention in the foreign exchange market amounted to 6.7 billion crowns,' the central bank said in a statement.
Changes in the foreign reserves can signal that the central bank has been stabilising the crown or indicate that the bank may change its key interest rates.
The reserve figures came after the European Central Bank left its main policy rate unchanged at 1.0 percent.
'The Nationalbank chose not to continue the narrowing of the interest rate difference to the ECB today,' Handelsbanken chief economist Jes Asmussen said.
'There should be ample padding to narrow the interest rate to the ECB further, and we will not 100 percent rule out that the Nationalbank may take some of the rate of 1.55 off tomorrow, but we just do not have it as the main scenario.'
(Editing by Ruth Pitchford) ($1=5.277 Danish Crown) Keywords: DENMARK RESERVES/ (Copenhagen newsroom, tel: +45 33969649, e-mail: copenhagen.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
The central bank, whose main lending rate stands at 1.55 percent, signalled no change in interest rates.
A Reuters survey of six economists gave a central estimate for foreign exchange reserves to remain steady at 325.3 billion crowns, unchanged from May. The numbers exclude central government foreign loan transactions.
Denmark belongs to the European Union but not the euro zone. Its long-standing policy of maintaining a stable crown against the euro means that the central bank shifts key interest rates for the sole purpose of keeping the crown around its central parity of 7.46038 per euro.
The central bank's net purchases of foreign exchange -- which includes items such as interest accrued on the reserves and changes in banks' euro-denominated deposits at the Nationalbank -- totalled 8.2 billion crowns in June, and the central government repaid 3.3 billion in foreign debt.
'In June ... Nationalbank's net purchase of foreign exchange due to intervention in the foreign exchange market amounted to 6.7 billion crowns,' the central bank said in a statement.
Changes in the foreign reserves can signal that the central bank has been stabilising the crown or indicate that the bank may change its key interest rates.
The reserve figures came after the European Central Bank left its main policy rate unchanged at 1.0 percent.
'The Nationalbank chose not to continue the narrowing of the interest rate difference to the ECB today,' Handelsbanken chief economist Jes Asmussen said.
'There should be ample padding to narrow the interest rate to the ECB further, and we will not 100 percent rule out that the Nationalbank may take some of the rate of 1.55 off tomorrow, but we just do not have it as the main scenario.'
(Editing by Ruth Pitchford) ($1=5.277 Danish Crown) Keywords: DENMARK RESERVES/ (Copenhagen newsroom, tel: +45 33969649, e-mail: copenhagen.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.