Nigeria raises 162bn naira at treasury bill auction

LAGOS: Nigeria raised 161.54 billion naira ($513.64 mln) at a treasury bill auction on Wednesday after it received subscriptions for more than twice the amount on offer, traders said on Thursday.

The central bank sold 115.85 billion naira of one-year debt at a rate of 14.30 percent. It auctioned 11.77 billion naira and 33.93 billion naira respectively in three- and six- months maturities at 12.54 percent and 13.92 percent. Total subscription stood at 388.50 billion naira.

In December the government repaid 198 billion naira worth of treasury bills using part proceeds of a $3 billion Eurobond issue, instead of rolling over the debt to lower its borrowing costs. It plans to repay more bills this year.

Investors bid as high as 18.6 percent for the one-year paper. However, the government has been offering debt at lower yields to track declining inflation, which fell for the tenth month in November to 15.90 percent.