Transcript Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Factors Affecting Bond Yields and the Term Structure of Interest Rates
U.S. Treasuries
Viewed as having zero default risk Largest and most liquid market Lowest rate (yield) Rate (yield) is the base or benchmark rate
Treasury yields
Minimum yield investors will accept Other bonds trade at spreads over the treasury yield Examples of current U.S. Treasury rates
Risk Premium
Non-Treasury bonds trade at a spread above Treasuries: Yield on non-Treasury=yield on Treasury + spread or Yield on non-Treasury = yield on Treasury + risk premium The spread is stated in basis points The spread is compensation for risk.
Alternative spread measures include yield spreads and yield ratios
Spread determinants
Type of issuer Issuer’s perceived credit risk Maturity or term Embedded options Liquidity
Types of Issuers
U.S. Government U.S. Government Agency Municipal Government Credit (domestic and foreign corporations) Industrial, utility, finance, noncorporate Foreign Government
Perceived credit worthiness
Default risk measure the probability that principal and interest will not be repaid Higher default risk results in higher yields The spreads between treasuries and corporates with the same maturity are called credit spreads
Embedded options
Spreads reflect any embedded options Options include: calls puts conversion options Spreads will be: lower if the option is good for the buyer higher if the option is good for the seller
Taxability
Interest income is taxed at ordinary income rates Some interest is exempt from federal taxes After tax yield = pretax yield (1-tax rate) Equivalent taxable yield =tax exempt yield/(1-Tax rate) Qualified Municipal bonds are tax-exempt Muni bonds types general obligation (GO) revenue bonds AAA GO bond is benchmark for Munis
Liquidity and Financeability
Liquidity Related to depth and breadth of market Investors demand compensation for illiquidity Financeability demand by dealers to cover short positions “On the run” vs. “Off the run” Treasuries Corporate spreads credit and liquidity driven
Term Structure
Maturity (or term) plays an important role in yield determination Yield curve Depiction of maturity and yield Represent a specific risk class Treasury yield curve is most common
Theoretical Spot Rate Curve
Treasury Bond valuation: portfolios of zero coupon securities. Each cash flow should be discounted by the appropriate yield Cannot use yields on coupon bonds.
Need a zero coupon yield curve.
There are no zero coupon Treasuries with maturities > 1 year so a curve must be constructed
Constructing the Spot Rate Curve
Which securities?
On the run Treasuries On the run and selected off the run Treasuries All Treasuries Treasury coupon strips Must use increasingly rigorous methods as securities are added
Bootstrapping with “On the run” Treasuries
Use the “On the run” Treasury yields 3 month, 6 month, 2, 5, 10, 30 par yields Extrapolate to fill in curve every six months Bootstrap starting with the six month yield See example in class: Problem: Big gaps between observed yields
Other methods
Bootstrapping with “Off the run” Use all Treasuries Sophisticated screening and statistical fitting techniques Exponential splining Most used method. The theoretical spot yield curve is generated and provided for analysts.
Example using theoretical spot rates (exhibit 5-7) 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Period 1 2 3 4 5 8 9 6 7 10 11 6 6.5
7 7.5
8 8.5
9 9.5
10 Year 0.5
1 1.5
2 2.5
3 3.5
4 4.5
5 5.5
Cash Flow 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 105 5 5 5 5 Spot Rate (%) 5.25
5.5
5.76
6.02
6.28
6.55
6.82
6.87
7.09
7.2
7.26
7.31
7.43
7.48
7.54
7.67
7.8
7.79
7.93
8.07
PV of $1 at 0.974421
0.947188
0.918351
0.888156
0.856724
0.824206
0.790757
0.763256
0.730718
0.701952
0.675697
0.650028
0.622448
0.597889
0.573919
0.547625
0.521766
0.502665
0.477729
0.453268
PV of CF 4.872107
4.735942
4.591756
4.440782
4.283619
4.12103
3.953783
3.81628
3.653589
3.509758
3.378483
3.250138
3.112238
2.989446
2.869594
2.738125
2.608831
2.513325
2.388643
47.59317
Theoretical Value = 115.4206
Forward rates
Yield curve provides consensus estimate of future spot rates Consider two alternatives Buy a one year instrument Buy two six month instruments consecutively Investor should be indifferent between strategies
Exhibit 5-8: Two alternative one year investments
Calculating forward rates
Invest $100 in each strategy Alternative 1 payoff at end of year $100(1 + z 2 ) 2 Alternative 2 payoff at end of year $100(1 + z 1 )(1+f) Investors are indifferent if: $100 (1 + z 2 ) 2 = $100(1 + z 1 )(1+f) f = ((1 + z 2 ) 2 /(1 + z 1 )) -1
Yield Curve Shapes
Yield curve theories
Pure Expectations Liquidity Preferred Habitat Market Segmentation
Pure expectations
Forward rates = expected future rates Term structure reflects expectations only Upward sloping – rising future rates Flat – rates won’t change Downward sloping – falling future rates Why?
Shortcomings
Interpretations of the Theory
broadest interpretation local expectations form of the pure expectations theory return to maturity interpretation
Liquidity
Considers issues other than expectations Investors prefer shorter maturities Demand a premium for longer terms Forward rates reflect Future expectations Risk or liquidity premium Changes interpretation of YC shapes
Preferred Habitat
Term structure influenced by Expectations Risk premiums Risk Premiums influenced by Relative supply and demand in different maturities Can be positive or negative Can explain all yield curve shapes
Market segmentation
Like PH supply/demand in maturity sectors influence rates Investors/borrowers will not shift across maturities YC shape influenced by supply/demand in maturity classes
Main yield curve influences
Ilmanen (1996) finds three main influences Market expectations Bond risk premiums Convexity Bias