Rates drop, demand slips for new Freddie Mac bills

NEW YORK, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Freddie Mac (FRE.P) said it sold $2 billion of bills on Monday at lower interest rates, drawing slightly lower demand than for sales of the same maturities last week.

Freddie Mac said it sold $1 billion of three-month bills due March 2, 2009 at a 0.740 percent rate, down from 0.800 percent for the same-sized offering on Nov. 24.

The company also sold $1 billion of six-month bills due June 1, 2009, at a 1.230 percent rate, down from 1.360 percent for an auction of the same size a week ago.

Demand for the three-month bills was softer than last week, with a bid-to-cover ratio of 3.15 compared with 3.52 on Nov. 24.

The bid-to-cover ratio for the six-month bills also dipped from a week earlier, to 3.35 compared with 4.86 on Nov. 24.

A bid-to-cover ratio reflects the amount of bids compared with the amount offered. A lower ratio indicates lesser demand.

Settlement is Dec. 2. (Reporting by Lynn Adler; Editing by James Dalgleish)