IRELAND PLANS to return to the bond markets for the auction of short-term bills in the coming months, the agency responsible for the national debt has said.

The National Treasury Management Agency has affirmed plans to issue new debt “during the summer months” as a warm-up to an intended full entry into the debt markets later next year.

IMF projections list Ireland as needing to raise €13.1 billion on the bond markets next year, out of a total of €23.2 billion borrowing requirement – with only €10.1 billion left in the EU-IMF bailout kitty to cover the combined costs of plugging the government deficit and rolling over existing loans which mature next year.

The agency says it is “monitoring the situation closely” and is paying close attention to what it described as “a number of important external factors” which could influence the final timetable.

That is likely to include the continuing tumult in the eurozone, where Cyprus yesterday became the fifth country of 17 to formally request membership, as well as the rising costs of short-term auctions for other countries.

Only this morning, Spain issued a new round of three-month bills – at rates almost three times higher than a similar auction last month.

Read: Spanish borrowing costs nearly triple in short-term auction