Australia to guarantee bank deposits for three years: PM

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia will guarantee all bank deposits for three years and will also guarantee wholesale funding to Australian banks in an attempt to combat the global credit crisis, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said on Sunday.

Australia will also make A$4 billion ($2.6 billion) available for mortgage-backed securities to help maintain liquidity for non-bank lenders, Rudd told reporters.

(Reporting by James Grubel and James Regan; Editing by Anshuman Daga)