EU becomes ‘real player’ in debt markets but faces investor scepticism

The EU’s debt pile is set to reach €900bn by the end of 2026 as the bloc borrows to fund coronavirus recovery programmes and support for Ukraine, but investors are finding its bonds less attractive than some of those of individual European countries.

The bloc’s own bond issuance has grown since member states reached a historic 2020 agreement on common debt issuance for its NextGenerationEU programme, designed to help economies recover from the pandemic and support Europe’s green and digital transition.