Madrid - SPA
Spain managed to auction ?3 billion ($3.8 billion in medium-term debt but at a higher cost, in the first such sale since an EU summit last week that's been generally supported in the markets, AP rerported.
The Treasury achieved the maximum of its ?2 billion - ?3 billion range in Thursday's auction of three-, four- and 10-year bonds.
But investors exacted a price - the interest rate on the 10-year bonds rose to 6.43 percent from 6.04 percent at the last such auction on June 7.
The summit last week was perceived as a victory for Spain and Italy because euro leaders agreed to allow the permanent bailout fund to recapitalize troubled banks directly, rather than through governments, which would add to their debt burdens.