LONDON, May 28 (Reuters) - European government bond

yields edged up on Wednesday with a focus on bond sales from

Germany and Spain later in the day, just as a weak Japanese

government bond auction sparked a selloff in Japan's bond market

that rippled out.

Germany, the euro zone's benchmark bond issuer, plans to

sell 2 billion euros of 15-year bonds and Spain is expected to

sell a 10-year bond via a syndicate of banks.

Signs of weak demand at bonds sales in Japan and the United

States over the past week have returned the market's focus to

high debt levels in major economies, putting upward pressure on

bond yields -- especially those on long-dated bonds.

Long-dated Japanese government bond yields rose sharply

after demand at a closely watched 40-year bond auction on

Wednesday dropped to its lowest level since July.

That set the tone for other big debt markets, with Germany's

benchmark 10-year bond yield up around 1.5 basis points at 2.54%

in early trade and 30-year yields around 2 bps

higher at 3.04%.

When a bond's yield rises, its price falls.

"I would say that there is a global shift, that things are

happening in Japan, things are happening in the U.S. Things are

still happening in Germany," said Nordea chief market strategist

Jan von Gerich, referring to high debt levels and expectations

for increased bond supply.

"If we look at the repricing that we've seen in Europe, that

has mainly centred on German bonds," he added.

Plans for hefty German stimulus have boosted expectations

for increased bond sales, with German 30-year yields up 44 bps

so far this year.