Costs rise in default insurance

Dublin: Belgium and Ireland led a surge in the cost of insuring against default on European sovereign bonds on concern governments will struggle to fund their deficits.

Credit-default swaps on Belgium jumped 14 basis points to a record 249 and Ireland increased 6 to an all-time high of 646. That helped push the Markit iTraxx SovX Western Europe Index up 4 basis points to a record 217.

Investors are betting Belgium’s political impasse that has left the country without a full-time government will push up the costs of servicing Europe’s third-highest debt burden.