French, Austrian Bond Yields Fall to Record Lows on ECB Optimism
This article is for subscribers only.
Europe’s government bonds rose this week, with French, Austrian and Belgian yields falling to records, as the European Central Bank said it would keep policy accommodative and the Bank of Japan boosted asset purchases.
French 10-year yields dropped the most since July this week after ECB president Mario Draghi said policy makers “stand ready to act” to bolster the region’s flagging economy. Italian and Spanish bonds led gains in so-called peripheral securities as the BOJ announced 7.5 trillion yen ($77.4 billion) of monthly asset purchases. German bunds advanced as a U.S. report showed employers hired fewer workers than economists predicted in March, underpinning demand for the region’s safer assets.