1. The Term Structure of Interest Rates
Chapter 12
The Term Structure of Interest Rates

2. Overview of Term Structure
The relationship between yield to maturity and maturity.
Yield curve - a graph of the yields on bonds relative to the number of years to maturity
Information on expected future short term rates can be implied from yield curve.
Three major theories are proposed to explain the observed yield curve.

3. Treasury Yield Curves

4. Yield to Maturity
Measure of rate of return that accounts for both current income and the price increase over the life
YTM is the discount rate that makes the present value of a bond’s payments equal to its price
Proxy for average return

5. Yield to Maturity
Solve the bond formula for r

6. 12.1 The Yield Curve

7. Bond Pricing Yields on different maturity bonds are not all equal
Need to consider each bond cash flow as a stand- alone zero-coupon bond when valuing coupon bonds
Example: 1-year maturity T-bond paying semiannual coupons can be split into a 6-month maturity zero and a 12-month zero. If each cash flow can be sold off as a separate security, the value of the whole bond should be the same as the value of its cash flows bought piece by piece.

8. Bond Pricing
Bond stripping and bond reconstitution offer opportunities for arbitrage
Law of one price, identical cash flow bundles must sell for identical prices
Value each stripped cash flow
discount by using the yield appropriate to its particular maturity

9. Yields and Prices to Maturities on Zero-Coupon Bonds ($1,000 Face Value)

10. Bond Pricing
Treat each of the bond’s payments as a stand- alone zero-coupon security
(bond stripping : portfolio of three zeros)
Pure yield curve
Relationship between YTM and time to maturity for zero- coupon bonds
On-the-run yield curve
Plot of yield as a function of maturity for recently issued coupon bonds selling at or near par value

11. 12.2 The Yield Curve and Future interest Rate

12. Yield Curve Under Certainty
If interest rates are certain
Considering two strategies
Buying the 2-year zero, YTM=6%, hold until maturity. Price=890
Invest 890 in a 1-year zero, YTM=5%. Reinvest the proceeds in another 1-year bond

13. Yield Curve Under Certainty
The proceeds after 2 years to either strategy must be equal

14. Yield Curve Under Certainty
Spot rate
The rate that prevails today for a time period corresponding to the zero’s maturity
Short rate
For a given time interval (e.g. 1 year) refers to the interest rate for that interval available at different points in time
2-year spot rate is an average (geometric) of today’s short rate and next year’s short rate

15. Yield Curve Under Certainty
An upward sloping yield curve is evidence that short-term rates are going to be higher next year
When next year’s short rate (r2=7.01%) is greater than this year’s short rate, the average of the two rates is higher than today’s rate

16. Short Rates versus Spot Rates

17. Holding period returns
When interest rate with certainty, all bonds must offer identical rates of return over any holding period
Calculate HPR for 1-year maturity zero- coupon bond (YTM=5%)
The first 1-year HPR for 2-year maturity zero-coupon bond (YTM=6%)

18. Holding period returns
For 1-year maturity bond
Rate of return=( )/952.38=5%
For 2-year maturity bond
Price of today=890
One year later, when next year’s interest rate=7.01%, sell it for 1000/1.0701=934.49
Rate of return=( )/890=5%

19. Forward Rates from Observed Rates
No access to short-term interest rate quotations for coming years---infer future short rates from yield curve of zeros
Two alternatives get same final payoff
3-year zero
2-year zero, reinvest in 1-year bond

20. Forward Rates from Observed Rates
fn = one-year forward rate for period n
yn = yield for a security with a maturity of n

21. Forward Rates from Observed Rates
future short rates are uncertain
Forward interest rate
defined as the break-even interest rate that equates the return on an n-period zero-coupon bond to that of an (n-1)-period zero-coupon bond rolled over into a 1-year bond in year n
Calculated from today’s data, interest rate that actually will prevail in the future need not equal the forward rate.

22. Example of Forward Rates
4 yr = 8.00% 3yr = 7.00% fn = ?
(1.08)4 = (1.07)3 (1+fn)
(1.3605) / (1.2250) = (1+fn)
fn = or 11.06%

23. Interest Rate Uncertainty and
12.3
Interest Rate Uncertainty and
Forward Rates

24. Interest Rate Uncertainty
What can we say when future interest rates are not known today
Suppose that today’s rate is 5% and the expected short rate for the following year is E(r2) = 6% then:
The rate of return on the 2-year bond is risky for if next year’s interest rate turns out to be above expectations, the price will lower and vice versa

25. Short-Term Investors Short-term-horizon investors
If invest only for 1 year
certain return=( )/952.38=5%
If invest for 2-year zero, if expect the 1-year rate be 6% at the end of the first year
the price will be 1000/1.06=943.4
the first-year’s expected rate of return also is 5%=( )/898.47
but the 2nd year’s rate is risky, is not certain
If >6%, bond price<943.4
If <6%, bond price>943.4
2-year bond must offer an expected rate of return greater than riskless 5% return , sell at price lower than

26. Short-Term Investors
If the investors will hold the bond when it falls to
Expected holding period return for the first year
=( )/881.83=7%
risk premium=7%-5%=2%
Forward rate:
Liquidity premium compensates short-term investors for the uncertainty about the price at which they will be able to sell their long-term bonds

27. Short-Term Investors
Short-term Investors require a risk premium to hold a longer-term bond
This liquidity premium compensates short-term investors for the uncertainty about future prices
If most individuals are short-term investors, bonds must have prices that make f2 greater than E(r2)

28. Long-Term Investor Wish to invest a full 2-year period
Purchase 2-year zeros at , guaranteed YTM=8.995%
If roll over two 1-year investments, an investment of grow in 2 years to be
The investor will require
Offered as a reward for bearing interest rate risk

29. Long-Term Investor Wish to invest a full 2-year period
Purchase 2-year zeros at 890, guaranteed YTM=6%
If roll over two 1-year investments, an investment of grow in 2 years to be
The investor will require
Offered as a reward for bearing interest rate risk

30. Theories of the Term Structure
12.4
Theories of the Term Structure

31. Theories of Term Structure
Expectations theories
Liquidity Preference theories
Upward bias over expectations
Market Segmentation

32. Expectations Theory
Observed long-term rate is a function of today’s short-term rate and expected future short-term rates.
Forward rates that are calculated from the yield on long-term securities are market consensus expected future short-term rates.
An upward-sloping yield curve if investors anticipate increases in interest rates
Upward slope means that the market is expecting higher future short term rates
Downward slope means that the market is expecting lower future short term rates

33. Liquidity Preference Theory
Short-term investors dominate the market
Forward rates contain a liquidity premium and are not equal to expected future short-term rates.
Investors will demand a premium for the risk associated with long-term bonds.
The yield curve has an upward bias built into the long-term rates because of the risk premium.

34. Market Segmentation
Short- and long-term bonds are traded in distinct markets.
Trading in the distinct segments determines the various rates.
Observed rates are not directly influenced by expectations.

35. Expected One-Year Rates in Coming Years
Year Interest Rate
0 (today) 8%
1 10%
2 11%
3 11%
8% % % %

36. Pricing of Bonds PVn = Present Value of $1 in n periods
r1 = One-year rate for period 1
r2 = One-year rate for period 2
rn = One-year rate for period n

37. Pricing of Bonds using Expected Rates
Price of 1-year maturity bond
Price of 2-year maturity bond
Price of 3-year maturity bond

38. Pricing of Bonds using Expected Rates
YTM is average rate that is applied to discount all of the bond’s payments

39. Bond Prices using Expected Rates
Time to Maturity Price of Zero* Yield to Maturity
1 $ %
* $1,000 Par value zero

40. y1=8% y2=8.995% y3=9.660% y4=9.993% 8% 10% 11% 11% expected Short rate
8% % % %
y1=8%
y2=8.995%
y3=9.660%
y4=9.993%
expected
Short rate
in each year
YTM
for various
maturities
(Current spot rate)

41. Bond Prices using Expected Rates
YTM, average of the interest rates in each period (geometric)

42. Interpreting the Term Structure
12.4
Interpreting the Term Structure

43. Direct relationship between YTM and forward rate
Under certainty
Uncertain
The yield curve is upward sloping at any maturity date, n, for which the forward rate for the coming period is greater than the yield at that maturity

44. If yield curve is rising, must exceed Example
YTM on 3-year zero is 9%, YTM on 4-year zero
If then
If , then

45. Given an upward-sloping yield curve, What account for the higher forward rate?
Expectations of increases in can result in rising yield curve; converse is not true .

46. Yields on Long-Term Bonds

47. Treasury Yield Curves