- Nicholas Spiro, managing director of Spiro Sovereign Strategy
Italy raised 5.645 billion euros of debt in an auction on Thursday, with nation's borrowing rates dropping sharply from the previous auction. The average yields on Italian government securities, due to mature in 2022, dropped to 5.24% from 5.82%. However, the demand was slightly lower, with bids exceeding supply 1.33 times, down from 1.42 last month.
"For the time being, Italy is passing the 'Spanish contagion' test," Nicholas Spiro, managing director of Spiro Sovereign Strategy in London, said after the auction.
"Despite the escalating crisis in Spain, Italy was able to pull off a fairly successful auction of longer-dated paper, with a significant fall in yields."
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.34 per cent to 271.65. Germany's DAX Index added 0.19 per cent to 7,290.02, while France's CAC 40 Index rose 0.72 per cent to 3,439.32.
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