Greece raises 1.5 bln euros from bond issue, ministry says

Greece raised 1.5 billion euros from the issue of a three-year bond on Thursday with a yield of 3.5 percent, the finance ministry said in a statement.

Athens said it received orders worth 3 billion euros. It had been expected to raise between 2.5 billion to 3 billion euros but faced lackluster demand following concerns about the health of a parent company of Portugal's largest bank.

"The government expresses its satisfaction that once again international investors showed their confidence in the Greek economy," the finance ministry said in a statement. "This way, the effort to create a full yield curve continues." [Reuters]