Nova Scotia Borrows $250 million in Six-Year Bond

The province is raising $250 million by way of six-year Euro-Canadian bonds issued in London, Finance Minister Neil LeBlanc announced today. The issue is in Canadian funds.

It is the first public Euro-Canadian bond issue by Nova Scotia since February 1997. The money will be used as part of the province's general borrowing program to finance government operations and business enterprises, as well as to refinance maturing debt.

The move increases the amount of fixed-term debt held by the province, and thus reduces exposure to floating debt in the event that interest rates move higher. After taking into account other costs and discounts, the effective borrowing cost to the province is 6.46 per cent.

The settlement date for the bonds is Jan. 10, 2000.