Italy counts the cost of a hung parliament

Italy's hung parliament cost the country dearly in the bond markets yesterday as the nation sold €5.3bn (£4.6bn) in debt.

Its cost of borrowing for three years jumped to a three-month high of 2.48 per cent – up from 1.85 per cent in January and the highest since December – and demand for the bonds also fell.

The Italian treasury also sold €2bn of a 15-year bond it first issued in January, paying a yield of 4.9 per cent compared with 4.81 per cent at the initial sale, which was managed by a syndicate of banks.