Investment-grade index

Interest rate or term structure risk stems from movements in the benchmark interest rate curve. Excluding exchange rate risk, it is the main source of risk for most investment-grade bonds. Any reasonable model will include markets that are stable and actively traded. A typical coverage, taken from JP Morgan GBI Broad Index, is shown in Exhibit 23.1. Note the presence of two emerging markets. 

The treatment of unrated paper for investment grade indices falls under this category. Many index providers include unrated paper in investment grade indices on the premise that if these instruments were to be rated they would end up in the investment grade. The other area where many index providers often vary from each other is the treatment of splitrated bonds, both for the rating tier they represent, as well as to determine whether they form part of the investment grade universe or not. 

Fallen angels are securities that started out as investment grade bonds and have ended up, or are expected to end up in high-yield territory, such as Marconi and KPN. The former rose substantially before the downgrade to high yield, as it formed a big part of the European high-yield index, and high-yield investors had no choice but to buy the name and bid up the price. 

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