The Italian Treasury today placed eight billion euros in six-monthly Treasuries at a rate of 1,657%, with a minimal change compared to 1,659% at the end of April. Two billion Ctz were also placed, with a yield of 2,852%, down from last month's 3,044%. Today's auctions are the first of Italian government bonds after the rejection of Standard & Poor's, which last weekend lowered the outlook on the sovereign rating from "stable" to "negative".
Alessandro Tentori, of Bnp Paribas, underlines how “the bids were quite strong, even during the auctions. The moment was favourable, Spain tightened the spread again this morning and Italy held up well in this round of enlargements”. The conditions were "ideal for going to auction and the good demand was reflected in the pricing". According to Tentori, “the Italian Treasury has confirmed its ability to move well on the market, also in the light of the nervousness generated by the recent comments from the rating agencies”.
