PREIT Enters $150M of Swaps

Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, a Philadelphia-based shopping center REIT, has entered into $150 million (notional amount) of interest rate swap agreements, according to PREIT.The swap agreements, bearing a blended 10-year swap rate (starting in 2008) of 5.3562%, are aimed at hedging the expected interest payments associated with a portion of the company's anticipated issuances of long-term debt, PREIT said. The company cited an earlier round of swap agreements totaling a notional $370 million, noting that they had been arranged in connection with expected debt issuances in 2007 and 2008. "In 2008, PREIT has some additional, previously disclosed obligations that are likely to require financings," the company said. "Also, the company may have strategic opportunities for other financings in that year." The company can be found online at http://www.preit.com.