The UK Debt Management Office has slashed planned long conventional gilt sales to £23 billion for fiscal year 2026-27, representing roughly 9% of total issuance. This significant shift reflects declining structural demand from domestic pension funds, particularly the liability-driven investment sector, which has been de-risking since the 2022 mini-budget crisis. The Bank of England has scheduled no long-dated gilt sales for Q3 2026, focusing instead on short and medium-maturity auctions. The DMO plans to run a pilot switch auction on September 24, 2026, allowing the government to retire long-dated bonds and replace them with shorter maturities. The UK’s average gilt maturity remains among the longest in the G7 at approximately 14.4 years.
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