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Greece to keep borrowing from markets: finance minister

ATHENS, April 13-- Greece will continue borrowing from international markets without hurdles, Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou said Tuesday.

The minister made the announcement after the successful auction of 26- and 52-week treasury bills worth 1.2 billion euros earlier in the day.

"The government has not asked for the activation of the EU-IMF mechanism, even though it is there, available, if needed," Papaconstantinou said.

Tuesday's auction was seen by analysts as a first crucial test for the Greek economy since euro zone leaders agreed on a potential aid package.

Greece has already borrowed at least 25 billion euros this year and according to estimates needs to raise around 10 billion euros in May to meet its financing needs and a total of 53 billion euros by the end of this year. (1 euro = 1.3583 U.S. dollars)

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