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A Term Structure Decomposition of the Australian Yield Curve

Author

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  • Richard Finlay

    (Reserve Bank of Australia)

  • Mark Chambers

    (Reserve Bank of Australia)

Abstract

We use data on coupon-bearing Australian Government bonds and overnight indexed swap (OIS) rates to estimate risk-free zero-coupon yield and forward curves for Australia from 1992 to 2007. These curves, and analysts’ forecasts of future interest rates, are then used to fit an affine term structure model to Australian interest rates, with the aim of decomposing forward rates into expected future overnight cash rates plus term premia. The expected future short rates derived from the model are on average unbiased, fluctuating around the average of actual observed short rates. Since the adoption of inflation targeting and the entrenchment of low and stable inflation expectations, term premia appear to have declined in levels and displayed smaller fluctuations in response to economic shocks. This suggests that the market has become less uncertain about the path of future interest rates. Towards the end of the sample period, term premia have been negative, suggesting that investors may have been willing to pay a premium for Commonwealth Government securities. Due to the complexity of the model and the difficulty of calibrating it to data, the results should not be interpreted too precisely. Nevertheless, the model does provide a potentially useful decomposition of recent changes in the expected path of interest rates and term premia.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Finlay & Mark Chambers, 2008. "A Term Structure Decomposition of the Australian Yield Curve," RBA Research Discussion Papers rdp2008-09, Reserve Bank of Australia.
    • Handle: RePEc:rba:rbardp:rdp2008-09
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Richard Finlay & Callum Jones, 2011. "Time-varying term premia and the expectations hypothesis in Australia," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(2), pages 133-136.
    2. Li, Matthew C., 2016. "US term structure and international stock market volatility: The role of the expectations factor and the maturity premium," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 1-15.
    3. Vijay A Murik, 2013. "Measuring monetary policy expectations," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 38(1), pages 49-65, April.
    4. Anthony Brassil & Jon Cheshire & Joseph Muscatello, 2018. "The Transmission of Monetary Policy through Banks' Balance Sheets," RBA Annual Conference Volume (Discontinued), in: John Simon & Maxwell Sutton (ed.),Central Bank Frameworks: Evolution or Revolution?, Reserve Bank of Australia.
    5. Robert J. Bianchi & Michael E. Drew & Eduardo Roca & Timothy Whittaker, 2017. "Risk factors in Australian bond returns," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(2), pages 373-400, June.
    6. Rui Chen & Meng Wang & Jiri Svec, 2017. "Australian Bond Excess Returns: An Asset Allocation Perspective," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(2), pages 163-173, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    expected future short rate; term premia; term structure decomposition; affine term structure model; zero-coupon yield;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C51 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Construction and Estimation
    • E43 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Interest Rates: Determination, Term Structure, and Effects
    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates

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