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Predicting the term structure of interest rates incorporating parameter uncertainty, model uncertainty and macroeconomic information

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  • De Pooter, Michiel
  • Ravazzolo, Francesco
  • van Dijk, Dick

Abstract

We forecast the term structure of U.S. Treasury zero-coupon bond yields by analyzing a range of models that have been used in the literature. We assess the relevance of parameter uncertainty by examining the added value of using Bayesian inference compared to frequentist estimation techniques, and model uncertainty by combining forecasts from individual models. Following current literature we also investigate the benefits of incorporating macroeconomic information in yield curve models. Our results show that adding macroeconomic factors is very beneficial for improving the out-of-sample forecasting performance of individual models. Despite this, the predictive accuracy of models varies over time considerably, irrespective of using the Bayesian or frequentist approach. We show that mitigating model uncertainty by combining forecasts leads to substantial gains in forecasting performance, especially when applying Bayesian model averaging.

Suggested Citation

  • De Pooter, Michiel & Ravazzolo, Francesco & van Dijk, Dick, 2006. "Predicting the term structure of interest rates incorporating parameter uncertainty, model uncertainty and macroeconomic information," MPRA Paper 2512, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 03 Mar 2007.
  • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:2512
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    Cited by:

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    2. Dauwe, Alexander & Moura, Marcelo L., 2011. "Forecasting the term structure of the Euro Market using Principal Component Analysis," Insper Working Papers wpe_233, Insper Working Paper, Insper Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa.
    3. Bowsher, Clive G. & Meeks, Roland, 2008. "The Dynamics of Economic Functions: Modeling and Forecasting the Yield Curve," Journal of the American Statistical Association, American Statistical Association, vol. 103(484), pages 1419-1437.
    4. Carriero, Andrea & Kapetanios, George & Marcellino, Massimiliano, 2012. "Forecasting government bond yields with large Bayesian vector autoregressions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 36(7), pages 2026-2047.
    5. Art Durnev & Sergei Guriev, 2007. "The Resource Curse: A Corporate Transparency Channel," Working Papers w0108, Center for Economic and Financial Research (CEFIR).
    6. Christensen, Jens H.E. & Diebold, Francis X. & Rudebusch, Glenn D., 2011. "The affine arbitrage-free class of Nelson-Siegel term structure models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 164(1), pages 4-20, September.
    7. Peter Exterkate & Dick Van Dijk & Christiaan Heij & Patrick J. F. Groenen, 2013. "Forecasting the Yield Curve in a Data‐Rich Environment Using the Factor‐Augmented Nelson–Siegel Model," Journal of Forecasting, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(3), pages 193-214, April.
    8. Diana Zigraiova & Petr Jakubik, 2017. "Updating the Ultimate Forward Rate over Time: A Possible Approach," Working Papers 2017/03, Czech National Bank.
    9. Marcellino, Massimiliano & Kapetanios, George & Carriero, Andrea, 2010. "Forecasting Government Bond Yields with Large Bayesian VARs," CEPR Discussion Papers 7796, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    10. David Jamieson Bolder & Yuliya Romanyuk, 2010. "Combining Canadian Interest Rate Forecasts," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Arjan B. Berkelaar & Joachim Coche & Ken Nyholm (ed.), Interest Rate Models, Asset Allocation and Quantitative Techniques for Central Banks and Sovereign Wealth Funds, chapter 1, pages 3-30, Palgrave Macmillan.
    11. Penikas, Henry, 2008. "Forecasting for the Bank's Asset-Liability Management," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 12(4), pages 3-26.
    12. Kavita Sirichand & Stephen G. Hall, 2016. "Decision‐Based Forecast Evaluation of UK Interest Rate Predictability," Journal of Forecasting, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 35(2), pages 93-112, March.
    13. Goodarzi, Milad & Meinerding, Christoph, 2023. "Asset allocation with recursive parameter updating and macroeconomic regime identifiers," Discussion Papers 06/2023, Deutsche Bundesbank.
    14. Penikas, Henry & Simakova, Varvara, 2009. "Interest Rate Risk Management Based on Copula-GARCH Models," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 13(1), pages 3-36.
    15. Michiel De Pooter, 2007. "Examining the Nelson-Siegel Class of Term Structure Models," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 07-043/4, Tinbergen Institute.
    16. Fernandes, Marcelo & Vieira, Fausto, 2019. "A dynamic Nelson–Siegel model with forward-looking macroeconomic factors for the yield curve in the US," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 1-1.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Term structure of interest rates; Nelson-Siegel model; Affine term structure model; forecast combination; Bayesian analysis;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C53 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Forecasting and Prediction Models; Simulation Methods
    • E47 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications

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