Britain will sell an extra £4.4 billion of government bonds this financial year after Chancellor John Healey's first Budget, the UK Debt Management Office has confirmed. Gross gilt sales for 2026-27 will rise to £250.6 billion, up from £246.2 billion in the DMO's April remit, while net Treasury bill sales will rise to £8 billion, £3 billion more than previously planned. The DMO's net financing requirement for the year is now forecast at £258.6 billion, £7.4 billion higher than in April.

A shift away from long-dated debt

The revised remit continues a move away from costly long-dated gilt issuance, with the share of long-dated sales falling to its lowest since 1990. Gilt prices edged higher after the announcement, led by 20- and 30-year gilts whose yields dropped to a one-month low, after yields on those maturities hit their highest since 1998 earlier in October. Market reaction was muted: analysts described the overall remit as broadly manageable and broadly in line with what bond dealers had expected, with the median dealer forecast at £249.6 billion of gilt sales.

What comes next year

For 2027-28, the gross financing requirement is expected to rise to £312.6 billion, up from the £307.6 billion predicted in March and April, but below the £334.3 billion dealers had feared. The £250.6 billion of gilt sales this year will be raised through £169.1 billion in auctions, £54.1 billion via syndications, £14.9 billion from an initially unallocated portion and £12.6 billion in gilt tenders, including £12 billion of planned green gilt sales. The DMO said the plans were published as part of the Budget announcements, and the government said it remains committed to as diversified an investor base as possible.

Sources: Reuters, GOV.UK Budget 2026, Morningstar / Dow Jones.