Germany to issue 6 billion euros more debt than planned in fourth quarter due to coronavirus

Germany

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany plans to issue 6 billion euros ($7 billion) more debt in the fourth quarter than it originally planned, the German finance agency said on Monday, to fund spending to tackle the coronavirus pandemic that has battered the economy.

Europe’s largest economy will issue a total of 50.5 billion euros in debt in the October-December period excluding inflation-linked debt, the agency said.

That includes beefing up its issuance of money market instruments to 21.5 billion euros from its original plans to auction off 15.5 billion euros of the short-term debt.

The debt agency said it would issue two inflation-linked bonds in the fourth quarter, without giving details on their issuance volume, but it said the total funds generated from such debt in 2020 would reach around 6 billion euros.

The agency also said it would issue its second green bond in November with a five-year maturity and an issuance volume of 5 billion euros as part of its efforts to establish a yield curve for the booming sustainable finance market, confirming what sources had previously told Reuters.

Germany has seen good demand for its first-ever green bond, issued earlier in September, which was seen as a landmark moment for Europe’s climate-focused finance drive.

($1 = 0.8576 euros)