Apple bond sales sound alarm on lending

Apple Inc's mega bond sale is fueling speculation US interest rates are poised to increase.

The iPhone maker sold $6.5 billion of debt on Monday, locking in borrowing costs for as long as 30 years. The sale follows a plunge in benchmark Treasury yields, with US 30-year borrowing costs falling to a record low last week. Yields may not stay this low if forecasts for the Federal Reserve to raise rates are correct. Apple's last sale in 2013 coincided with the record low in company borrowing costs.

"This is the right time to issue corporate bonds," said Kim Youngsung, the head of overseas investment in Seoul at South Korea's Government Employees Pension Service, which manages the equivalent of $13.7 billion. "Interest rates will go up in the middle of this year."