Skip to content
Subscriber Only
Business

Draghi Smashes Corporate Yields to 1% Before a Bond Is Bought

  • A rush for company debt as ECB readies to start purchases
  • ‘Very scary’ prospect for some; push into speculative grade
Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank.

Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank.

Photographer: Martin Leissl/Bloomberg
Updated on

Even before Mario Draghi starts his corporate-bond buying program on Wednesday, he’s pushed down borrowing costs in Europe toward unprecedented levels.

The average yield on investment-grade company notes in euros tumbled to 1.002 percent on Monday, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch index data. That’s the lowest in more than a year and a smidgen away from dropping below 1 percent, something that’s happened in just one other period.