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FRANKFURT -- The European Central Bank disclosed Monday that it had bought 16.5 billion euros in bonds in the first week since taking the unprecedented step of intervening in markets to halt a sell-off of Greek and other European debt. The bank did not say which countries' debt it was buying, how much it would spend in the future, or whether it bought any corporate bonds. The 16.5 billion euros ($21 billion) was considered a relatively small amount for the market. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The swift rally in stock markets this year caught everyone's attention. But with far less fanfare, a frenzy has been taking place in the market for corporate bonds. When credit markets practically shut down last year, businesses had to pay huge premiums to raise money from investors, offering returns of 10 to 20 percent to anyone who would buy a company's debt. Now, investors are the ones paying higher prices as they race back into the bond markets, where companies and governments go to raise money for new projects and mergers, and to finance their daily operations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]