Greek Bond Yields Jump to Over 20%

Greece plans to sell 1.25 billion euros ($1.78 billion) of 13-week Treasury bills today as growing speculation the country will need to restructure its debt pushed bond yields to euro-era records.

Greece’s two-year bond yield exceeded 20 percent yesterday, as official denials that the nation was preparing a restructuring failed to convince investors. The yield on 10-year debt has jumped more than 300 basis points since Feb. 15 when Greece last sold 13-week bills at a yield 3.85 percent.

“Price actions in the market suggest people believe there’s no smoke without fire,” said Richard McGuire, a senior fixed-income strategist at Rabobank International in London. “Greece will keep rolling over the bills even though the costs of doing so may be rising.”

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble’s comments on April 14 that Greece may need to restructure its debt sent bonds tumbling across peripheral Europe. The slide reversed the gains of the previous week triggered by optimism that contagion from the region’s debt crisis had been contained with Portugal’s bailout request.

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