The National Treasury Management Agency sold €1 billion of bonds on Thursday, meaning it has reached 80 per cent of the minimum amount of long-term debt it plans to issue this year.

The State’s debt office sold €500 million of bonds that are due in 2022, priced to carry an interest rate, or yield, of 0.02 per cent, it said in a statement. It also sold €500 million of 10-year bonds at a yield of 0.958 per cent.

The latest auction brings to €11.25 billion the amount of bonds sold by the NTMA so far this year, equating to 70 per cent of the mid-point of the €14 billion to €18 billion of long-term debt it plans to sell in 2018. The bonds sold to date in 2018 have a weighted average interest rate of 1.04 per cent and maturity of 12 years.

“Demand for today’s auction was strong,” said Frank O’Connor, NTMA director of funding and debt management. “Total bids amounted to €2.7 billion and were up from [a]  previous auction in March, despite the lower yields on offer.”