Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 October 2012
14. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Minister for Finance his plans to attract non Euro investors by offering Irish government bonds denominated in US dollars; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42306/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraInternational investors, including non-euro investors, are already significant holders of Irish Government bonds. The NTMA inform me that, to the best of their knowledge, a large proportion of the buyers of Treasury Bills in auctions this year and of the €4.2 billion of long-term bonds issued in July were non-domestic investors and that there has been significant non-euro interest in Ireland. The €1 billion issuance of amortising bonds in August was primarily, as one would expect, driven by domestic demand. The NTMA already issue non-euro-denominated short-term commercial paper in the market. It is the policy of the NTMA to swap non-euro receipts into euro and so remove the currency exposure.
Longer-term Government bonds denominated in US dollars are another potential market for the NTMA to tap. I am aware that other eurozone sovereigns, such as Finland, Belgium, and other European sovereigns such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden, have issued in that market this year. Any decision by the NTMA to issue bonds denominated in US dollars would depend on prevailing market circumstances and the attractiveness of the funding costs relative to other markets, particularly the euro.
