Incomplete Markets, Liquidation Risk, and the Term Structure of Interest Rates
44 Pages Posted: 10 Nov 2010
Date Written: October 1, 2010
Abstract
We analyze the term structure of real interest rates in a general equilibrium model with incomplete markets and borrowing constraints. Agents are subject to both aggregate and idiosyncratic income shocks, which latter may force them into early portfolio liquidation in a bad aggregate state. We derive a closed-form equilibrium with limited agent heterogeneity (despite market incompleteness), which allows us to produce analytical expressions for bond prices and returns at any maturity. The attractiveness of bonds as liquidity makes aggregate bond demand downward-sloping, so that greater bond supply raises both the level and the slope of the yield curve. Moreover, time-variations in liquidation risk are shown to help explain the rejection of the Expectations Hypothesis.
Keywords: Incomplete markets, yield curve, borrowing constraints
JEL Classification: E21, E43, G12
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?
Recommended Papers
-
Valuation in Over-the-Counter Markets
By Darrell Duffie, Nicolae Garleanu, ...
-
Valuation in Over-the-Counter Markets
By Nicolae Garleanu, Darrell Duffie, ...
-
Valuation in Over-the-Counter Markets
By Darrell Duffie, Nicolae Garleanu, ...