The value of fixed-income securities: What does it means for the issuer and the investor? One of the most important asset classes for investors are fixed-income securities that consist of debt obligations, or bonds, and preferred stock. In simple terms, a fixed-income security is a financial obligation in which the borrower agrees to pay specified sum of money at specified dates. This transaction involves different groups that comprise the bond markets: issuers, underwriters, and purchasers The entity issuing the debt obligation is the borower in the transaction. Some of the biggest issuers in the bond market are (1) Answer Choices such as the U.S. government and the government of U.K., 1. Coupons, Bond Price (2) government-related agencies, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; (2) Fee 2. Bond Price, Par Value 4 such as the state of Issuer Underwriter Purchaser California, Sakai City, Japan; (3) 3. Corporations, Central Governments, 5 such as British Telecom, and The Walt Disney Co. and (4) Municipal Governments , such as the European 4. Corporations, Supranational Banks, Investment Bank and the World Bank Why do entities borrow in the form of debt obligations? Municipal Governments Economies around the world were still recovering during 2012 after the 2008-2009 recession. Governments and central banks continued their efforts to facilitate economic recovery. The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank (the Fed) kept interest rates at record lows. This, along with several other reasons, found the bond markets flooded with new bond issues. The following article highlights some reasons why firms issued debt obligations to raise funds In the context of the reasons why entities borrow in the form of bond issues, which statement is correct? Check all that apply n5. Corporations, Supranational Banks, Central Governments Corporate-Bond Issuers Race to the Market as U.S. Yields Approach Record Low 6. Corporations, Supranational Banks, 7 Municipal Governments 7. A, B, C, D 8. Rise, Fall 9. Widening, Narrowing 10. Lower, Higher 11. Low, High 12. Rise, Fall 13. Increasing, Decreasing On April 25, 2011, the Fed announced that short-term interest rates would be kept near zero through late 2014. Because corporate bonds are indexed to Treasury yields and the Treasury yield hit nearly all-time lows, issuing conditions became conducive for investment-grade borrowers A Bond coupon payments are borrowing costs for issuers. When interest rates are low, borrowing cost is low, thus more conducive for issuers to lock in low costs. Investors looking for tax-exempt income are likely to invest in companies that pay high dividends When equity markets are turbulent and investors prefer relatively safer fixed-income securities, bond markets become a safe place to invest. This leads to increased demand, thus encouraging corporations to supply fixed-income securities when investors look for instruments that help generate income and have lower risk levels-as compared to equity offerings-they are eager to invest in debt obligations. B Europe's debt crisis fueled the demand for relatively safer U.S. securities, and the market became more confident that Europe's crisis would not significantly disrupt recovery of the world's largest economy D This triggered issuers to announce investment-grade supply benefiting from the low borrowing costs. Companies such as IBM The relationship between corporate bond yields and Treasury yields The article highlights an important relationship between the corporate bond yields and the U.S. Treasury yields. When demand for Treasuries increases, prices rise and yields 8 All else being equal, this leads to the 9of corporate bond yields because they are riskier and their yields are 10 than U.S. Treasury yields. However, this does not necessarily imply that particular changes in the Treasury yield will lead to similar changes in the corporate bond yields. A corporate bond with a narrow yield spread and high credit rating will offer a relativelyy return when the bond is purchased. However, if the yield spread widens, the price of the bond will 12 thus13the value of the fixed-income asset class in the investor's portfolio