Bonds
Venezuela’s central bank devalues bolivar as crisis continues
Bolivar devalued 64% in latest currency auction in an attempt to stem effects of financial crisis; Goldman Sachs comes under fire from opposition leader
Denmark hails success of new primary dealer model
National Bank says new approach has boosted bond market liquidity across a range of metrics
Norges Bank reserves swell, thanks to equity returns
Fixed-income portfolio returns were essentially zero in Q1, but the central bank is able to achieve returns on equity holdings
PBoC and HKMA announce Bond Connect scheme
The current phase only allows overseas institutional investors to invest in China's bond market
Bank of Italy paper finds no evidence of asset over-valuation
Researchers look at data from eurozone, Japan and US from 1980 to 2017
ECB paper looks at PSPP’s ‘flow effects’ on sovereign bond yields
“Flow effects” have limited but real impact, researchers find
BoJ should provide ‘more realistic’ projections – former policy board member
Claims constant overestimation of inflation expectations undermines credibility
European supervisory authorities call for changes to stress test methods
Next European stress tests should simulate yield changes and “interconnectedness”
Central banks eye gold amid global uncertainty
Rising inflation and the unclear impact of Trump administration policies may lead reserve managers to view gold – and inflation-linked bonds – more favourably
Norges Bank’s Nicolaisen: covered bonds can create distortions
Covered bonds are widely seen as a safe asset, but they face risks and could have unintended consequences for markets
BoJ builds on BIS banking statistics
Researchers break down the statistics further, shedding new light on patterns of cross-border banking
Paraguay’s Valdovinos: bond issuance ‘not all about the money’
$500 million issuance was six-times oversubscribed, but the Paraguayan governor says its success lies in the message it sends to investors overseas
Bank Negara Malaysia looks to boost bond market risk management
Malaysia’s central bank discusses ways to enhance the bond market's breadth and transparency with participants; repos could be used to improve liquidity
Italian paper tracks spreads on eurozone corporate bonds
“Fragmentation” has begun to decrease following ECB’s use of QE, researcher says
Reserve manager of the year: Bank of Israel
Israel’s central bank has made breakthroughs in its sensitivity analysis of near-optimal portfolios, as well as making notable gains from its diversification strategy
Global securities lending services provider of the year: BNP Paribas Securities Services
The French bank has helped a range of official institutions to glean additional revenue from their bond holdings in tight markets
Market ‘tightness’ affects QE success – Riksbank paper
Model accounting for the demand and supply of bonds allows authors to reveal new insights into the price and liquidity impact of asset purchases
BoJ acts to thwart pressure on yields
Central bank commitment to yield curve control faces first serious test; BoJ launches unlimited purchases to hold yield down
Fresh investigations into Sri Lankan bond scandal launched
Central bank and Sri Lankan president both investigating possible malpractice around bond sales to the central bank pension fund
Dutch paper looks at sovereign bank interdependencies
Researchers apply correlation between sovereign and bank credit default swaps
Italian paper looks at securitisation of SME loans
Asymmetric information can be overcome by the use of observable data
ECB paper looks at ‘sub-sovereign’ bond yield spreads
Researchers find debt levels and risk aversion are important factors
BoE article sees benefits to agent-based modelling
“Bottom-up” approach is complementary to models that are already widely used; the Bank of England has created new models for both housing and corporate bond markets
Norges Bank recommends higher equity share for oil fund
Declining global growth and lower volatility suggest a larger equity share is both desirable and manageable, central bank says