IN BRIEF (Page 17)

Greek borrowing plan

Greece may borrow privately through banks by the end of January, its second such transaction in as many months, following cuts to the nation's credit ratings, according to the country's debt manager.

The decision on whether to use a private placement will depend on reaction to the country's stability and growth program, Spyros Papanicolaou, the managing director of Greece's Public Debt Management Agency, said yesterday. The country had earlier considered offering bonds through a syndicate of banks.