Suppose the yield on a 10-year T-bond is currently 5.05% and that on a 10-year Treasury Inflation Protected Security (TIPS) is 2.15%. Suppose further that the MRP on a 10-year T-bond is 0.90%, that no MRP is required on a TIPS, and that no liquidity premium is required on any T-bond. Given this information, what is the expected rate of inflation over the next 10 years? Disregard cross-product terms, i.e., if averaging is required, use the arithmetic average.

A) 2.21% B) 2.10% C) 2.00% D) 1.90% E) 1.81%

2)Suppose the real risk-free rate is 3.25%, the average future inflation rate is 4.35%, and a maturity risk premium of 0.07% per year to maturity applies to both corporate and T-bonds, i.e., MRP = 0.07%(t), where t is the number of years to maturity. Suppose also that a liquidity premium of 0.50% and a default risk premium of 0.90% apply to A-rated corporate bonds but not to T-bonds. How much higher would the rate of return be on a 10-year A-rated corporate bond than on a 5-year Treasury bond? Here we assume that the pure expectations theory is NOT valid. Disregard cross-product terms, i.e., if averaging is required, use the arithmetic average.

A) 2.03% B) 2.13% C) 1.75% D)1.84% E) 1.93%