These were the yields and movements on some of the most watched 10 year bonds by the close in Europe:

Spain: 6.44% (-4bp)
Italy: 5.77% (+3bp)
France: 2.51% (-2)
Germany: 1.37% (flat)
UK: 1.78% (+2bp)
US: 1.73% (-1bp)

bp = basis point or 0.01 percentage point

Spanish bonds slid, pushing up the yield, as an ECB official made clear there would be no immediate purchases of Spanish debt.

The President of the National Bank of Austria, and ECB Governing Council member Edwald Nowotny, said in Belgrde today that bond purchases were not a ‘matter of discussion’.

This is bad news for Spain which may have to sell more debt to prop up the ailing lender Bankia, which was taken into public ownership earlier this month.

The fear is the Spanish central government may not be able to support yet more banking collapses while simultaneously helping the indebted regional governments.

While the vultures circle Madrid, investors were buying German bonds as the imperative in the market became safety.

BS