Austrian chancellor can't rule out Cyprus euro exit

Austria hopes Cyprus will find a way to stay in the euro zone but its fate is in the hands of its own government, Chancellor Werner Faymann said on Wednesday.

After an international rescue for the island was thrown into turmoil by its rejection of a bank deposit tax on Tuesday, Faymann said he preferred a solution that would not hurt small savers both in Cyprus and around Europe.

Speaking after a weekly cabinet meeting, he said that the situation was unsustainable and that he hoped Cyprus would come up with a solution and stay in the euro.

"But I cannot rule anything out for Cyprus," the Austrian Press Agency quoted him as saying. "Each country makes its own decision and no one will take that away from them."

(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan; editing by Patrick Graham)