Spanish treasury places over 5 bln euros in first auction of the year

The Spanish treasury placed on Thursday treasury bonds worth 5.008 billion euros (about 5.914 billion U.S. dollars) in the first auction of the year with interest rates falling to an all-time low.

The treasury exceeded expectations of selling between four and five billion euros while the demand stood at 8.318 billion euros.

A total of 2.831 billion euros worth of five-year treasury bonds carried an average interest rate 0.928 percent, below the 0.946 percent of the previous auction held in December.

A further 1.538 billion euros worth of 15-year treasury bonds fetched an average interest rate of 2.272 percent, falling from the previous 2.842 percent. Meanwhile, the remaining 638 million euros worth of 22-year lifespan carried an average interest rate of 2.701 percent.

After the auction, Spanish risk premium fell slightly to 120 points and Spain's 10-year bond interest rate fell below 1.70 percent.

After this first auction of the year, the Spanish treasury will hold three more auctions this month. (1 euro = about 1.18 U.S. dollars) Enditem