Ireland aims at bond return

Ireland is hoping for a window of relative calm in the eurozone debt crisis over the coming weeks to make a return to short-term bond markets on schedule and stay there.

In what it hopes will be a prelude to a resumption of long-term borrowing before the €85bn bailout runs out next year, the debt agency reiterated this month that it plans to issue Treasury bills for the first time in almost two years “over the summer months”.

While uncertainty over elections in Greece put paid to any hopes of getting an issue away in June, National Treasury Management Agency officials will be watching market reaction to this week’s EU summit closely to see if the time is right to move.