PARIS: France raised 8.4 billion euros ($11.0 billion) in an auction of medium and long-term debt on Thursday, with rates climbing moderately amid strong demand, the country's debt management agency said.

In the fourth placement of medium and long-term debt this year, the rate of return it paid to raise 10-year funding rose to 2.98 percent from 2.91 percent on March 1.

The rate of return paid on five-year and 14-year bonds also rose modestly, while that on 39-year bonds dipped.

Spain was forced to pay sharply higher rates at a bond auction on Wednesday, its first debt sale since a tough austerity budget last week, in a sign of fresh concerns over its ability to bring its strained finances under control.

That concern rippled through the heavily indebted eurozone, with France seeing a sharp rise in its short-term borrowing rates. At an auction on Wednesday it paid 0.086 percent on three month bills, up from 0.48 percent in the previous auction on March 26.