Topic 3 Interest Rates
Topic 3 Interest Rates
Topic 3 Interest Rates
1. If a yield curve looks like the one below, what is the market predicting about the
movement of future short-term interest rates? What might the yield curve
indicate about the market’s predictions about the inflation rate in the future?
The flat yield curve at shorter maturities implies that short-term interest rates are likely to
decline considerably in the near future, but the steep upward slope of the yield curve at longer
maturities shows that interest rates are expected to increase farther into the future. Because
interest rates and projected inflation move in unison, the yield curve indicates that the market
expects inflation to decline somewhat in the short term but rise subsequently.
2. Predict what will happen to interest rates on a corporation’s bonds if the federal
government guarantees today that it will pay creditors if the corporation goes
bankrupt in the future. What will happen to the interest rates on Treasury
securities?
Bond without government guarantee:
Cannot pay the coupon cannot pay face value during the maturity bond becomes default.
Bond with government guarantee:
Government will cover risk
Guaranteed Bonds:
Guarantor makes payment if bond issuer fails to do so to bondholder.
The government guarantee lowers the default risk on business bonds, making them more
appealing in comparison to Treasury securities. Increased demand for corporate bonds and
decreased demand for Treasury securities will result in lower corporate bond interest rates
and higher Treasury bond interest rates.
1100
1000=∑ 90.19+ 2
(1+r )
1100
1000−90.19=∑ 2
(1+ r)
909.81(1+r )2 = 1100
(1+r )2 = 1.2090
1+r = 1.0995
R = 0.09954
= 9.95%
3 year bond rate today:
100 100 1100
1000=∑ + +
1 .10877 1.09954 =1.20899 (1+ r)3
2
1100
1000=∑ 90.19+82.714+ 3
(1+ r)
1100
1000=∑ 172.904+ 3
(1+ r )
1100
1000 – 172.904 = 3
(1+r )
827.096(1+r )3 = 1100
(1+r )3 = 1.32995
1+r = 1.09971
R = 0.09972
= 9.97%
1-year rate 2 years from now:
Now - 2021 1 year - 2022 2 year – 2023 3 year - 2024
10.877% 9.95% 9.97%
k = term premiums
I = interest rates
(1+i3−k 3)3
−1
(1+i 2−k 2)2
(1+0.06−0.0035)3
−1
(1+0.05−0.0025)2
1.17926
−1
1.09726
= 0.07473 = 7.47%