The November Conference Board LEI reported the average consumer expectations for business conditions for October at 0.96, a sharp increase from the September reading of 0.43.
Consumer expectations for business conditions Consumer expectations data, which forms the only non-leading component of the Conference Board Leading Economic Index (or LEI), is collected through two different surveys. One of these surveys is conducted by the University of Michigan and Reuters, where consumer expectations for economic conditions in the next 12 months are collected, […]
Consumer expectations for business conditions Consumer expectations form the only component of the Conference Board Leading Economic Index (or LEI) based on business expectations. Referring to consumer expectations regarding future economic conditions, their measurement is an average of two surveys. One survey, conducted by the Conference Board, records consumer expectations for business conditions six months […]
VanEck A Diverse and Growing Category The emerging markets high yield bond market has grown tremendously over the past 10 years, from $56 billion at the end of 2007 to $440 billion as of June 30, 2017.[2. Source: BofA Merrill Lynch.] In addition to growing in size, diversity within the category has also increased. Investors currently […]
VanEck Higher Yield and Lower Duration Compared to U.S. high yield bonds, emerging markets high yield bonds offered a 90 bps yield pickup as of June 30, 2017.[1.U.S. high yield bonds and emerging markets high yield bonds are represented by BofA Merrill Lynch US High Yield Index and BofA Merrill Lynch Diversified HY US Emerging […]
Many leading bond index providers are still not including China’s onshore bonds in their benchmark indexes due to various regulatory and operational concerns.
Emerging market debt can be a great source of income potential in a diversified portfolio, provided you can manage it during a period of extreme volatility.
The VanEck Vectors EM Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC) could be a good entry point after it took a hit following rising interest rates and volatility in the US dollar.
Negative bond yields in Japan and low Fed funds rates in the United States and the Eurozone were one reason emerging market bonds performed well in 2016.
Trump’s unexpected presidential victory caused short-term uncertainty about markets and policies. His win reinforced a reflationary theme in global markets.
In the wake of disappointing economic indicators over the past month, the Federal Reserve kept the interest rate unchanged in its policy meeting this week.
There are several risks to investing in emerging market bonds right now. Emerging countries have been on a debt binge of sorts for the past five years.
Emerging market debt (EMB) offers plenty of opportunities to investors. Markets are expected to continue their outperformance for the next few quarters.
Smart beta funds use the combined tactics of active management and passive management stocks to get a higher return than the market but at a far lower cost.
Generally, economic expansion leads to higher demand and inflation. The central bank is forced to raise interest rates. During a recession, the central bank faces the opposite problem—lower demand and inflation. This forces the central bank to lower interest rates.
Sovereign borrowers in emerging markets are typically lower-rated compared to U.S. Treasuries. As a result, they provide higher yields. U.S. Treasuries (TLT) are considered to be some of the safest assets in the world.
A stable political regime is one of the most important factors that determines sovereign risk. The ability to institute fiscal reforms through the legislative framework is also important to access international debt markets. Credit markets would look more favorably on such borrowers.
The GDP is the broadest measure of a country’s economic health. It’s the sum of the value of all goods and services produced by a country over a specific period—usually a quarter or a year. Growth, or lack of growth, in GDP provides clues on the country’s future repayment potential.
Most bond investments are subject to credit risk and interest rate risk. Credit risk is the risk of the borrower defaulting on the amount borrowed. Interest rate risk implies changes in the value of bond prices due to changes in interest rates. Bond prices move opposite to interest rates.
Sovereign bonds may be issued by governments of developed market (EFA), emerging market (EEM), and frontier market economies. Countries are classified as developed, emerging, or frontier markets depending on their stage of economic and financial sector development.
Indicators of foreign economic activity suggested continued expansion, though at a rate lower than in the previous quarter. The deceleration was concentrated in emerging market economies.
In this article, we’ll discuss some of the risks an investor must consider before investing in international bonds. Some of these risks are unique to this asset class.
This part compares the performance of domestic bond funds investing in the U.S. Treasury securities with international bond funds, which invest in sovereign bonds issued by foreign governments.
Emerging market (or EM) international bond funds invest in bonds whose issuers are based in countries whose economies aren’t as advanced as those in developed markets.
International bond funds are funds that invest in debt issued overseas, either by foreign governments or corporates or both. These funds invest either in local currencies or U.S. dollar–denominated debt securities.
