Nigeria raises 330 bln naira Treasury bills at higher yields

Nigeria raised 329.93 billion naira ($1.66 billion) worth of three-month to one-year treasury bills on Wednesday at higher returns than in its previous auction, the central bank said on Thursday.
The bank sold 45.85 billion naira of three-month paper at 5.18 percent, up from 4.85 percent at a sale on Feb. 17.
The bank raised 62 billion naira of six-month debt at 7.57 percent against 7.30 percent, while it sold 222.08 billion naira of one-year paper at 9 percent compared with 8.98 percent.
Total subscription rose to 813.52 billion naira from 513.71 billion naira at the previous auction.
The 3-month bills closed at 4.82 percent on the secondary market on Wednesday, the 6-month traded at 7.77 percent while the one-year paper closed at 8.93 percent.
Africa's biggest economy issues treasury bills to banks and non-financial institutions to help ease government cash flow, manage banking system liquidity and curb inflation.