Germany has sold 30-year debt at a negative yield for the first time, although demand at Wednesday’s auction was weak as some investors balked at the prospect of paying to tie up their cash for three decades, the Financial Times reported. The sale of a new bond maturing in 2050 priced with a yield of minus 0.11 per cent, roughly in line with yields in the secondary market. German 30-year bonds have sunk into negative territory in recent weeks as investors pile into safe assets in anticipation of a revival of the European Central Bank’s bond-buying quantitative easing programme.

Gold miner Avocet Mining Plc on Wednesday appointed Paul Williams and Geoffrey Bouchier from Duff & Phelps Ltd as joint administrators, as it started its insolvency process, Reuters reported. The appointments, effective Aug. 21, come a few months after the struggling gold miner said its board proposed voluntary liquidation of the company as it faced mounting debt. Last week, the West Africa-focussed miner said it would pursue a formal insolvency process by appointing administrators to the company, but also remained open to exploring “viable funded investment opportunities”.

A High Court judge has said he would approve a debt write-off of about €3 million for musical director Frank McNamara and his wife Theresa Lowe, the former RTÉ presenter, The Irish Times reported. However Mr Justice Denis McDonald has sought further clarification first around the true value of Mr McNamara’s inheritance of his parents’ home and rental income on the property, which will go towards repaying some of the couple’s debts, before he signs off on their proposed personal insolvency arrangements.

Italy's bond yields tumbled on Tuesday amid growing investor expectations that its political crisis could be short-lived, potentially paving the way for a new coalition government and reducing the uncertainty of snap elections, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced his resignation as he made a blistering attack on his interior minister, Matteo Salvini, accusing him of sinking the ruling coalition for personal and political gain.

Germany has a new test of investors’ voracious appetite for bonds with very low or even negative yields: a 30-year bond that offers no interest payments at all, the Financial Times reported. Wednesday’s auction of a new €2bn bond maturing in 2050 marks the first time that Berlin has issued 30-year debt with a zero per cent coupon — a step it has already taken with 10-year bonds.

Casino has outlined plans to sell an additional €2bn in assets as the French retailer looks to slice its debt and focus on key markets, the Financial Times reported. The announcement on Tuesday comes as part of a broad restructuring led by chief executive Jean-Charles Naouri to shore up the company’s financial position. It had already sold €2.1bn in non-core assets as part of a previously-announced €2.5bn programme, the company said.

Germany’s central bank has warned that Europe’s largest economy is likely to tip into recession in the third quarter, dragged down by a sharp drop in German exports and a decline in industrial production, the Financial Times reported. The Bundesbank said in its monthly update that it expected Germany’s economy to remain “lacklustre” in the three months to September, adding that it “could continue to decline slightly” after it shrank by 0.1 per cent in the three months to June.

The U.K.’s oil refineries would be at a severe competitive disadvantage if Britain exits the European Union without a deal and tariffs were imposed on its gasoline exports, according to an industry group, Bloomberg News reported. A leaked government document, on the implications of a no-deal Brexit, claimed that two of the U.K.’s oil refineries could be forced to shut down if tariffs were imposed on British gasoline exports because it would make them noncompetitive compared to facilities within the bloc. However, they are unlikely to face permanent closure, according to industry analysts.

Greece’s new finance minister has said that implementing sweeping tax reforms will be his “key priority” as his country seeks to boost growth and rebuild credibility with investors following a decade of international bailouts backed by the EU and IMF, the Financial Times reported. Christos Staikouras told the Financial Times that the centre-right New Democracy government is planning “a comprehensive tax reform that will have a four-year horizon and will accelerate growth”.

The Government has seen almost €6 billion wiped off the value of its stakes in the three surviving bailed-out banks in the past year, leaving a notional shortfall in its aim to recoup their rescue costs during the financial crisis, The Irish Times reported.