European Bonds Rise as German Court Seeks Ruling on ECB Bailout

European government bonds rose after Germany’s top court asked the European Union’s highest tribunal to rule on the legality of the regional central bank’s still-untapped debt-purchase plan.

Spanish and Italian securities led gains amid speculation the decision means Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court has conceded it is powerless to impose a veto on the Outright Monetary Transactions plan. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc both said the European Court of Justice was unlikely to block the program. The region’s bonds extended gains after a U.S. report show employers added fewer jobs than economists forecast for a second month.