Italy raises $3.95 billion but rates up again

ROME — Italy has had to pay euro-era record high borrowing rates to get investors to lend it (euro) 3 billion ($3.95 billion) over five years.

Wednesday’s auction from the Bank of Italy show that the debt-riddled country paid an average yield of 6.47 percent.

The yield was up 0.17 percentage point from last time Italy looked to raise money over five-years and was the highest rate since 1997. The euro came into existence in 1999.

Italy has seen its borrowing costs rise markedly over the past few months as investors worry over its massive debts, which total around (euro) 1.9 trillion ($2.5 trillion), or around 120 percent of its GDP. It is considered too big to bail out by its partners in the 17-country eurozone.

The 5-year bond sale was the last of the year.