LONDON, April 18 (Reuters) - Euro zone bond yields fell slightly on Thursday as European Central Bank policymakers lined up behind a rate cut in June and as the recent surge in oil prices showed signs of running out of steam. Germany's 10-year bond yield, the benchmark for the euro zone, fell 3.4 basis points to 2.44%. Yields move inversely to prices.
The German 10-year yield slipped 1.5 basis points on Wednesday, but was still hovering near its highest level since late February, which it hit on Tuesday.
Italy's 10-year bond yield was lower by 6.4 basis points at 3.82%, and the gap between Italian and German bunds narrowed 2.4 basis points to 137 bps.
The spread between U.S. 10-year Treasuries and German Bunds widened 0.7 basis points to 213 bps.
Germany's two-year bond yield, which is more sensitive to ECB rate expectations, was down 2.3 bps at 2.93%. (Reporting by Anna Pruchnicka, Samuel Indyk; Editing by Amanda Cooper)