Austria: bonds, indices, credit ratings

Republic of Austria Government Bonds (RAGBs) are issued through the Austrian Treasury in the name and for the account of the Republic of Austria.

Bonds can be issued in two ways: auctions and through a bank syndicate.

Government bonds have been issued under an auction procedure since 1989. Bonds are offered to a defined group of financial institutions at regular intervals. The eligible institutions (24 at present) are called primary dealers.

Since 1999, the Republic of Austria has been issuing government bonds under the DIP through a bank syndicate. Only participants in the auction procedure are permitted to act as lead managers and co-lead managers. The syndicate may change for each issue.

Other financing instruments include a Euro Medium Term Note Programme (EMTN), an Austrian Treasury Bills Programme (ATB), an Australian Dollar MTN Programme and transactions in loans and Schuldscheinformat.

Total volume of Austrian government bond issuance in 2012 was EUR 20.8 billion. The total volume of all financing issued by the central government came to EUR 25.7 billion (including prefunding for 2013). Debt issued in 2012 has an average remaining term to maturity of over 14 years at an average yield of around 2.2%.