The cost to the State of borrowing money on international markets has begun falling, helped by an earlier successful acution of short-term debt and yesterday's Government decision on Anglo Irish Bank.
This evening, the yield - the interest rate demand by investors - on 10-year Irish bonds was 5.92%, having been around 6% earlier in the day.
Earlier, the National Treasury Management Agency, which borrows money on behalf of the State, also sold €400m of Treasury Bills.
Treasury Bills, or T-Bills, are a way of securing short-term funding, and they must usually be re-paid within months rather than years. The NTMA sold €250m of T-Bills maturing next April and €150m maturing in February.
The yields on the T-Bills also fell compared with an auction two weeks ago when more debt was offered. The offer was oversubscribed almost eight times, indicating strong demand.
The average interest rate on the five-month bills was 1.925%, compared with 1.978% two weeks ago. The yield on the seven-month bills was 2.19%, down from 2.348% two weeks ago.
