Irish two-year government notes have declined for a fourth day, pushing the yield five basis points higher to 10.3 per cent.

The 10-year yield jumped nine basis points to 10.1 per cent before retreating to just below 10 per cent at lunchtime.

LCH Clearnet said today that it would increase the extra deposit it charges clients to trade Irish government bonds to 35 per cent.

It cited the difference in yield between 10-year Irish debt and the AAA benchmark.

ING said the decline in Irish 10-year bonds reflected investor concerns that a positive outcome from bank stress tests would not be believed and that a negative outcome would "feed weakness in Irish debt".

"This asymmetrical outcome is being discounted is recent price actionm which has seen the Irish 10-year yield break above 10 per cent," ING said in a note to clients.

The results of the stress tests are to be published on March 31st.

Bloomberg