Ireland raises 3 bln euros from new bond sale

Ireland on Thursday raised 3 billion euros (about 3.27 billion U.S. dollars) through the syndicated sale of a new 10-year benchmark treasury bond maturing in May 2026.

The National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) said the funds were raised at a yield of 1.156 percent.

In Ireland, the NTMA is responsible for borrowing on behalf of the government and managing the national debt.

In its 2016 funding plan, it hopes to raise 6 to 10 billion euros through bond issuance.

The NTMA said there was strong and broad-based interest in Thursday's transaction, in keeping with recent bond issues.

The total order book amounted to 9.6 billion euros, with 88 percent taken up by overseas investors, including Britain, Nordics, Germany, the Netherlands and the rest of the world, it said.

Notwithstanding the large order book, the NTMA limited the size of Thursday's deal in order to accommodate bond auctions over the remainder of the year, which are an important element of market liquidity, it added.

"This is a strong start to 2016, representing half of our minimum target issuance for the year as a whole and at attractive rates for 10-year funds," said Frank O'Connor, NTMA director of funding and debt management.

"Today's transaction, two years to the day from Ireland's first bond sale since leaving the EU/IMF program, confirms that investor demand for Irish bonds remains healthy and broad-based," he said. (1 euro = 1.09 U.S. dollars) Endit