Fixed Income Markets II - Day

Continuing on from Fixed Income Markets I, this course examines the evolving products, changing marketplace and growing sophistication of the fixed income market.

This program covers the core concepts of the fixed income marketplace including the banking system, interest rates, and the yield curve. Discusses trading desk psychology and current market conditions. Ideal for traders, sales assistants, capital market assistants and other fixed income specialists. This program will highlight the Fed (policy, intervention and goals, Fed funds, the Government dealer, repo and reverse repo), the money market (bills and other short-term instruments, treasury coupon issues), and the yield curve (spreads and arbitrage, the outlook for interest rates and economic statistics).






Sales Personnel, junior research analysts, operations and systems staff, new entrants to fixed income markets, finance analysts and corporate bankers
No advance preparation required.
Students will be able to:
  • Understand and perform the mathematics underlying the fixed income market and understand the various measurements of value: yield to maturity, yield to call, yield to worst, discound yield vs. bond equivalent yield, horizon analysis
  • Understand and apply the concept of duration, as a measurement of volatility
  • Apply the Treasury Marketplace not only as an investment opportunity, but as a benchmark to price other products
  • Describe and analyze the features, benefits, risk, similarities and differences of specific fixed income products, including: mortgage-backed securities, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, asset-backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, credit default swaps, structured products, convertible bonds, and preferred stock
  • Identify appropriate clients for fixed income investing based on the benefits and risks of different products
  • Understand changes in the yield curve, its implications on the valuation of securities and portfolios
  • Explain he activities of rating agencies and the significance of their ratings
  • Understand trading strategies, hedging, and portfolio management
Fixed Income Markets I or equivalent knowledge. Financial calculator required.
"Instructor was very enthusiastic & knowledgeable on the subject."
"Great job addressing current market & issues. Great overall pictures of FI Mkts."
"IInstructor was excellent. Did a terrific job of explaining concepts while being very engaging."
"Instructor's practical & applied exeperience; practitioner & educated insight."
"The class is good and highly rewarding!"
  • Fixed Income Mathematics - Day
  • Fixed Income Mathematics - Evening
  • Yield Curve Analysis
  • Yield calculations
    • Yield vs. return vs. interest rate
    • Nominal yield
    • Current yield
    • Real yields
    • Price and yield
    • Yield to maturity

    Duration analysis

    • Definition
    • Calculation - explained
    • Interpretation
    • Limitations/advantages

    Modified Duration

    • Application

    Yield analysis

    • Impact of interest
    • Sources of return
    • Time value of money
    • Measuring returns
    • Re-setting the reinvestment rate

    Value of fixed income securities

    • Yield as a value measure
    • Yield to maturity - components
    • Yield to maturity - assumptions
    • Horizon analysis

    Bond pricing calculations of dollars

    • Per bond basis
    • Total principal

    Value as a basis point

    • Definition
    • Calculation
    • Factors influencing price volatility

    Yield curves

    • Definition of a yield curve
    • Determinants of shape of yield curve
    • Shape of yield curve and market expectations
    • Spreads between yield curves

    The rating services

    • Moody's
    • Standard & Poor's (S&P)
    • Fitch Investor's Services (FITCH/IBCA)
    • External research analysis firms
    • Research departments

    Uses for the ratings

    • Ratings reflect the probability of timely payment
    • Judgment - qualitative and quantitative
    • Collective judgment approach
    • Rating equality between rating agencies
    • Compensation for rating services

    Various indenture provisions

    • Call provisions
    • Put provisions
    • Sinking fund provisions
    • Refunding
    • Prefunding

    Additional security considerations

    • Covenants of the obligation
    • Third party guarantees
    • Insurance or collateral

    Application/interpretation of ratings

    • Investment decisions
    • Comfort levels
    • Short term securities vs. long term securities

    Contingent credit risk

      Trading environment

      • Market areas
      • Market players
      • Organized exchanges
      • Types of trades
      • Trading conventions

    Accrued interest
    • Standard payment date (6 mos./dtd date)
    • Accrued interest calculations
    • Relationship of accrued interest and yield

    The treasury and money market

      Overview of the money market

      • Function of the money market
      • Characteristics
      • Location of market place
      • General description
      • Participants

      The Federal funds market

      • Importance of Federal funds
      • Defined as a security
      • Methods of Federal funds exchange

      Types of money market instruments

      • T bills
      • Negotiable and jumbo certificates of deposit
      • Commercial paper
      • Banker's acceptances
      • Repurchase agreements and reverses
      • Municipal short term instruments

      U.S. government markets

      • Origin of the U.S. debt markets
      • OTC market
      • Principal business

      Specifications

      • Size
      • Structure
      • Volume
      • Spread narrower than other markets
      • Tax implications
      • Depository system
      • Participants

      T Bills

      • Size qualifications
      • Discounting and calculations
      • Maturity structure
      • Speciality bills

      T Notes

      • Size qualifications
      • Pricing and maturity structure
      • Basic notes and auction cycles
      • Specialty notes

      T Bonds

      • Size qualifications
      • Pricing and maturity structure
      • Auction cycles

      Strip securities

      • History
      • Dealer created proprietary zero coupon certificates
      • Group of primary dealers began to issue TRs
      • Treasury announced STRIP PROGRAM
      • Specifications
      • Trading specifications

      Flower bonds

        Primary market

        • Closed auction - single rate auction
        • Dutch auction - multi rate auction

        Secondary market

        • Trading segmentation
        • Trading day overview and week overview

        The municipal market

        • Advantages to the issuer/borrower
        • Tax considerations
        • Features of municipal debt
        • Legislative contraints

    General obligation bonds
    • Limited vs. unlimited tax
    • Issuance limitations
    • Voter approval
    • Statutory limitations

    Revenue bonds

    • Characteristics
    • Payable from revenues
    • No debt limitation
    • Sources of revenue

    Other bonds

    • Special tax housing bonds
    • Lease rental short terms
    • Moral obligation
    • IDB and PCR
    • Double barreled

    Primary market

    • Structures of a borrowing
    • Underwriting process
    • Distribution tiers
    • Syndicate restrictions
    • Legislative restraints

    Secondary market

    • Trading characteristics
    • Trading desks

    Corporate bond general characteristics

      Classifications

      • Public utilities
      • Transportation
      • Industrials - catch all
      • Banks and finance companies
      • International or Yankee issues

      Corporate debt maturity

        Interest payment characteristics

        • Fixed income or rate bonds special payment
        • Participation bond profits or asset appreciation
        • Income bond contingent on sufficient earnings
        • Zeros as a corporate vehicle

        Types of bonds

        • Secured
        • Unsecured

        Unsecured

        • Debenture bonds
        • Subordinated debenture

        Security for bonds

        • Real property using a mortgage
        • Personal property - may be pledged
        • The type of security or lack of is usually indicated in title of the bond issue

        Secured bonds

        • Mortgage bond
        • Collateral trust bond
        • Equipment trust certificates

        Convertible securities

        • General overview
        • Issuer's position
        • Investor's advantages/disadvantages
        • Terminology
        • Determining various relationships

        Preferred stock

        • General specifications
        • Issue types and issuers
        • Terms and features
        • Fixed rate or variable
        • Special features

    Asset backed securities
    • ABS support
    • Credit enhancements
    • Types of ABS other than mortgage

    History of the mortgage

    • Traditional mortgage
    • Government agencies
    • Lenders
    • Borrowers
    • Insurance

    Types of alternative mortgages

    • GPM
    • ARM

    Formation of an MBS

    • Originators
    • Intermediaries
    • Packing agencies
    • Secondary market

    Pricing conventions

    • Factoring
    • Calculating principal amount outstanding
    • Figuring invested dollars

    Yield determinants

    • Half life
    • FHA experience
    • Speed
    • Pre-payments

    Computing yield

    • FHA experience
    • PSA experience
    • CPR

    Factors affecting paydown

    • Convexity
    • Economic
    • Interest rate environment

    The CMO

    • Packaging
    • IO and PO strips
    • WAC and WAM
    • Tranches

    Credit Derivatives

    • Markets participants
    • Risks of credit derivatives

    Types of credit risk

    • Credit default risk
    • Credit spread risk
    • Downgrade risk

    Credit derivatives conventions

    • The basics
    • Single name
    • Default baskets
    • Market terminology
    • Conditions to payment

    Asset swaps

    • Mechanics of an asset swap
    • The asset swap - credit default swap basis

    Total return swaps

    • Mechanics
    • Pricing

    Credit default swaps

    • Mechanics of single, portfolio, index and exotic CDSs
    • Pricing

    Structured products
    • Credit linked notes
    • Collateralized debt obligations
    • Collateralized loan obligations
    • Collateralized bond obligations
    • Synthetic CDOs

    Risks of credit derivatives

    • Credit
    • Market
    • Liquidity
    • Legal
    • Operations

    Typical asset movement scenarios (swaps)

    • Riding the yield curve
    • Substitution swpas (primary vs. secondary)
    • Inter-market spread
    • Rate anticipation
    • Tax swapping

    Asset holding

    • Long term investing view
    • Short term investing view
    • Volatility
    • Return over time

    Trading strategies

    • Transition from high to low yields
    • Transition from low to high yields

    Hedging

    • Buying and selling to market expectations
    • Use of derivatives as cash substitutes
    • Theory of hedging

    Portfolios and investing decisions

      The investment management process

      • Setting investment objectives
      • Establishing investment policy
      • Selecting the portfolio strategy
      • Selecting the assets
      • Measuring and evaluating performance

      Overview of fixed income portfolio management

      • Historical perspective
      • Sources of return
      • Horizon and yield curves

      Overview of risks associated with fixed income securities

      • Bond specific
      • Portfolio risk characteristics

      Portfolio management strategies

      • Bond management techniques

      Active portfolio management

      • Overview of the active portfolio management process
      • Other strategies or tactics
      • Examples of active portfolios

      Passive portfolio management

      • Indexed bond funds: investing in the fixed income market
      • Bond immunization: safe planning for future needs
      • Dedicated portfolios: secure income to cover payouts
      • Cash flow matching

      Case studies for fun

      • Barings Bank Quick study in bad management and supervision
      • Orange County
      • Daiwa Bank
      • Long Term Capital Management

    Clients who register for this course will receive a complimentary 4-month subscription to FT.com. The Financial Times is the world's most respected financial newspaper, providing a broad assessment on finance, business and the industrial sector. The move to the electronic version follows an ongoing review of our environmental responsibilities as a global business and as part of the Pearson group. FT.com also has features that are not available in hard copy, such as: Special Reports, Alphaville, editor blogs, education sections and much more! Subscriptions will start within 6-8 weeks of the start of class and are limited to one subscription per client. (Please note: as of May 1, 2011, the electronic subscription replaces the hard-copy 3-month Financial Times subscription.)

    Lunch is included for all students taking day classes.