Goldman Sachs plan to repay state loan

INVESTMENT bank Goldman Sachs is considering issuing new shares to raise cash, as part of a plan to repay government funds, it was reported yesterday.

Last autumn, the Wall Street bank received $10 billion (6.8bn) in government funds as part of the Treasury Department's programme aimed at kick-starting the credit markets. Goldman executives have been saying in recent weeks that they would like to repay the government loan in the near future. Reports said the bank may announce plans to issue new shares next week, although no size was put on the proposed offering.

Goldman is scheduled to report its first-quarter results on Tuesday, with analysts forecasting earnings of around $1.60 a share for the three months to 31 March.