SPECIAL: Commodities
Commodity pricing
A new paper combines two key aspects of commodity pricing: a rational pricing model based on the present value of future convenience yields...
The latent factors behind commodity price indices
A 35-year empirical study suggests that about one third of the monthly changes in a broad commodity price index can be attributed to a...
Volatility risk premia in the commodity space
Volatility risk premia – differences between options-implied and actual volatility – are valid predictors for risky asset returns. High premia typically indicate high surcharges...
SYSTEMIC RISK
Low rates troubles for insurances and pension funds
A CGFS report highlights the pressure of a ‘low for long’ interest rate environment on...
Update on the great public debt issue
The latest IMF fiscal monitor is a stark reminder of the public finance risks in...
How to prepare for the next systemic crisis
Systemic crises are rare. But they are make-or-break events for long-term performance and social relevance...
Modern financial system leverage
Leverage in modern financial systems arises from bank balance sheets and off-balance sheet transactions that...
The shadow of China’s banks
Unlike in the U.S., shadow banking in China is dominated by commercial banks, not securities...
SYSTEMATIC VALUE
Equity index futures returns: lessons of 2000-2018
The average annualized return of local-currency index futures for 25 international markets has been 6%...
Endogenous market risk
Understanding endogenous market risk (“setback risk”) is critical for timing and risk management of strategic...
What variance swaps tell us about risk premia
Variance swaps are over-the-counter derivatives that exchange payments related to future realized price variance against...
The dangerous disregard for fat tails in quantitative finance
The statistical term ‘fat tails’ refers to probability distributions with relatively high probability of extreme...
The importance of volatility of volatility
Options-implied volatility of U.S. equity prices is measured by the volatility index, VIX. Options-implied volatility...
POPULAR POSTS
The four components of long-term bond yields
A BOJ paper proposes an affine terms structure model for bond yields under consideration of the zero lower bound. It estimates the contribution of...
Leverage in asset management
Asset managers can use leverage to enhance returns. Outside hedge funds, such leverage is modest as share of assets under management. However, considering the huge...
Why the covered interest parity is breaking down
Deviations in the covered interest parity have become a regular phenomenon even in developed markets. Persistent gaps between on-shore and FX-implied interest rate differentials (“cross-currency...
Understanding market beta in FX
The beta of an investment measures its sensitivity to “market returns”. Unlike in equity, in FX the relevant benchmark for a beta cannot be a...
Trend following as tail risk hedge
Typical returns of a trend following strategy carry features of a “long vol” position and have positive convexity. Typical returns of long only strategies,...
Lessons from long-term global equity performance
A truly global and long-term (116 years) data set for both successful and failed financial markets shows that equity has delivered positive long-term performance...