The price of benchmark 10-year UK government bonds also increased slightly.
“This is a situation where government borrowing costs — and therefore all our borrowing costs — are incredibly vulnerable,” economist Mohamed El-Erian, an adviser to Allianz, told the BBC on Tuesday.
It will drive up import costs, adding to pressure on the Bank of England to hike interest rates faster and higher.
Previously, markets were absorbing about £100 billion ($108 billion) in UK bonds annually, according to Ross Walker, chief UK economist at NatWest Markets.
Yet higher borrowing costs will have consequences for both the government and households.