Italian, Spanish Bond Yields Soar to Records Amid Crisis Concern

Italian and Spanish 10-year bond yields surged to euro-era records while German bunds rallied as contagion from the sovereign-debt crisis spread, piling pressure on Europe’s leaders to find measures to contain the turmoil.

Yields on two-year Greek, Irish and Portuguese debt also reached the highest since the introduction of the 17-nation shared currency, while benchmark bund yields sank to within 12 basis points of an eight-month low. European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet reiterated his opposition to Greek debt restructuring as euro-area leaders prepared to meet in Brussels on July 21. Stocks fell on concern European banks may need to raise as much as 80 billion euros ($113 billion) of capital following stress tests on the lenders last week.