Spanish and Italian Bonds Ease

Spanish and Italian bond yields eased further Monday, extending last week’s rally as Spain’s prime minister indicated the country may ask for aid from the euro zone’s bailout fund.

Last week, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy suggested that the debt-laden country may ask for European Financial Stability Facility aid. This followed comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi who said any future purchases by the central bank to tackle the euro zone’s sovereign-debt crisis would focus on short-dated debt, resulting in a sharp fall in shorter-dated Spanish and Italian bond yields and a rise in the euro against the dollar.

In addition, ECB officials have said the bank could intervene and buy the bonds of struggling euro-zone countries without unanimous approval, raising hopes that a bond-buying program is still a possibility.

Read more: The Wall Street Journal

Posted in: Bonds, Business, Italy, Market, Money, News, Spain