Ecuador unlikely to default on debt-finance minister
Mon Jun 16, 2008 2:38pm EDT
NEW YORK, June 16 (Reuters) - Ecuador's Finance Minister Fausto Ortiz said on Monday the country is unlikely to default on its foreign debt despite an ongoing audit to determine its legitimacy.
"I don't see how the results of the audit will lead to a potential default," Ortiz told investors in New York, adding that President Rafael Correa is a leftist but has "common sense."
Correa said earlier this month that he would annul debt found to be illegitimate by the audit commission, set up last year to review the country's $10 billion foreign debt.
(Reporting by Manuela Badawy; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)