According to the page on the Bloomberg system of the state debt management agency, the IGCP, €400 million in six-month bills were placed at an average yield of -0.018%, against a positive yield of 0.006% in the last comparable auction, in mid-September, with demand 2.72 times supply.


At the same time, €1.1 billion in 12-month bills were placed at an average yield of -0.006%, compared with a positive 0.051% in the previous auction, also in mid-September, and with demand in the auction 2.18 times supply.


The IGCP had said before the auctions that the overall indicative amount for them was between €1 billion and €1.25 billion.


Portugal is among southern European countries zone that have enjoyed record low yields in recent months, largely thanks to the bond-buying programme of the European Central Bank, which was aimed at supporting a faltering euro-zone economy.


Last week, credit rating agency DBRS confirmed its 'BBB' rating for Portugal's long-term sovereign debt, meaning that the country continues to remain eligible for the ECB programme. All other international rating agencies view Portugal's government debt as 'junk', below investment grade.