The purpose of this study is to examine what affects the changes in credit spreads. A regression model was performed where the explanatory variables were; volatility, SP&500 index, interest-rate level the slope of yield curve and the dependent variable was credit spread for each of CSUSDA, CSUSDBBB, and CSUSDB. We found a positive correlation between these independent variables (Volatility, S&P 500index) and a negative correlation between interest-rate level and credit spreads. These results were consistent with our hypothesis. However, the link between the slope of yield curve and credit spreads was positive and that was inconsistent with our hypothesis and some previous studies. The conclusion of this paper was a change in credit spread is related to the variables that we used in our model. And these variables explained about 50 per cent of this change.

In this paper the Heath, Jarrow and Morton (HJM) framework is applied in the programming language Java for the estimation of the future spot rate. The subcase of an exponential model for the diffusion coefficient (volatility) is used for the pricing of interest rate derivatives (caps).

This paper empirically analyses the interest rate transmission mechanism from money market rate to lending rate by utilizing the bank-level data in the distinction of cash, automobile, housing and corporate loans in Turkey. The main objective is to reveal the possible asymmetries of the adjustment process as well as the extent of the pass through. Empirical results indicate that mark-up value is the minimum for corporate rates on average, followed by housing, automobile and cash rates, respectively. Additionally, while large banks follow small mark-up pricing, small banks follow large mark-up pricing for corporate loans. Furthermore, a complete pass through is detected in 75 percent of the corporate loans, whereas the rates of banks that completely react to money market changes are 58 percent for cash and housing loans and 50 percent for automobile loans. We also find evidence that cash loans having high mark-up values do not adjust completely to variations in money market rate. Based on TAR and MTAR models of Enders and Siklos (2001), substantial asymmetries exist for all lending types. In general, adjustment towards the long-run equilibrium is faster when the disequilibrium or change in disequilibrium is above the threshold (upward rigidity).

This paper uses co-integration method and error-correction model to re-examine the relationship between real exchange rate and expected interest rate differentials, including cumulated current account balance, over floating exchange rate periods. As indicated by the dynamic model, I find that there is a long run relationship among the variables using Johansen co-integration method. Final conclusion is that the empirical evidence is provided to show that our error-correction model leads to a good real exchange rate forecast.

This thesis aims at contributing to the growing number of studies on banking productivity, by attempting to introduce the interest rate spread as one of the driving forces behind productivity changes and alterations of the intermediary role of banks. The analysis is based on observations form the banking sectors of Germany and Sweden. As there is no clear concensus on the proper way of measuring banking output, and the choice of method varies considerably form study to study, this paper adopts the intermediation approach which is one of the three most offen recurring methods applied in research papers. The results include some interesting revelations such as the low significance of a change in labour and capital to the growth in banking output (challenging traditional theory), and that Swedish banks on average were moving away from the traditional intermediary role between 1979 and 1996 while German banks kept lending business at their centre of attention.

This paper examines the interest rate sensitivity of Business Development Companies (BDCs). The results of this study are intended to lend insight to investors about the viability and timing of investments in BDCs during the business cycle. Similar to previous research that has examined interest rate sensitivity of financial companies, this paper employs a two-factor market model to see whether BDCs are responsive to changes in short, medium, and long-term interest rates. My particular interest in BDCs is motivated by their unique asset-liability structure and requirements, as well as their high dividend payouts. Monthly data is drawn from the period ranging from January 2004 through December 2012. Using a sample of 30 BDCs, I estimate the sensitivity of BDC stock returns to stock market and interest rate changes in general. I then proceed to test whether size and Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) licensure status affect these sensitivities.

This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 and 2 The first chapter presents the introduction and the summary and the second chapter provides details on the survey and the data collection. Chapter 3 The demand and supply of credit in the rural finance markets are investigated in this paper using data on 989 households, in Orissa, India. The aim is to study the effects of household, farm productive characteristics and the policy variables on the demand and supply of credit. A type 3 Tobit model is estimated which corrects for sample selection and endogeniety bias. In addition, a generalised Double Hurdle model is estimated where the household's access to credit is treated distinctly from decisions about the interest rate charged. The results from the type 3 tobit model suggest that the size of the operational holdings, net-wealth, the dependency ratio, educational level of the household and the wages and output prices are important determinants of the demand and supply of credit. The Double Hurdle model suggests the important result that the size of land owned plays a crucial role in whether the household obtains a loan or not. Chapter 4 Based on the 'Rural Credit Market Survey of the Puri district in India', this paper investigates evidence on segmentation in the rural credit markets of Puri district. It further investigates the presence of any systematic association between the type of collateral offered by the household and the rate of interest at which it borrows. The data shows differences in the loan characteristics between the households borrowing from the formal and the informal sector. The empirical results confirm the presence of segmentation in the Puri credit market. For the households borrowing from the informal sector and the moneylenders, evidence also shows that the marketability of the collateral is inversely related to the interest rate. However, no such clear relationship is found for households borrowing from the formal sector. Chapter 5 In the theoretical and the empirical literature on rural credit markets it is widely assumed that the households are credit rationed in the formal sector, which offers subsidised credit. This view rests on the assumptions that all households have a positive demand for formal credit and that it is the cheaper source of credit. Three different models of formal credit rationing are estimated in this paper. The first model is a conventional credit-rationing model. The second model assumes that the probability to borrow from the formal sector is jointly determined by the demand for credit and the decision of the bank on access. Finally, the third model relaxes both these assumptions and the household chooses between borrowing from the formal or the informal sector. The results confirm that the access to the formal sector in the Puri rural credit markets is limited and that there exists a high demand for credit. This suggests a high degree of effective credit rationing by the formal sector in Puri.

The aim of this research is to check whether the Taylor rule in its simple linear form can be viewed as an appropriate description of the monetary policy pursued by Norway’s central bank – Norges Bank, and whether this rule can be used for forecasting purposes. Not only does this research focus on the original Taylor rule, but it also deals with its extended version designed for small open economies such as Norway. A conclusion about whether regressions can produce reliable coefficient estimates is drawn on the basis of time series’ properties tests and cointegration tests. The performance of the simple-form Taylor equation is compared to its alternative forms through forecasting exercises. The study has shown that the extended version of the Taylor rule with interest rate smoothing and augmented with the real exchange rate, the policy rate of the EU and oil prices can be viewed as a close approximation of Norges Bank’s monetary policy and can be used for forecasting purposes.

This paper aims to explain the current account imbalances between the United States of America, Japan and China. According to theory, such imbalances should offset each other so that the international balance of payments account is zero. The study also tests the Uncovered Interest Rate Parity (UIP) theory for the same sample of countries. The focus is on the empirics of the topic, therefore time-series analysis is used. The results suggest that American current account deficit can indeed be explained by the surpluses of the Japanese and Chinese current accounts. Furthermore, the conclusion regarding the UIP is that it simply does not hold in the real world. Finally, the main implication of this study is that the Asian countries will eventually buy up American assets if the trend of imbalances continues.

Since the floating exchange rate regime was set up in 1973, the issue of exchange rate has been concerned not only by corporate organizations but also folks. For multinational corporate institutions, exchange rate plays an important role in their profit. For folks, exchange rate influences the cost of going abroad. What¡¦s more, it is also one of investment tool for making profits. There are many empirical researches attesting that the term structure can forecast economic growth, and the exchange rate can be predicted by economic growth. However, no researches have shown the direct relationship between the term structure and the exchange rate. Therefore, the main purpose of this article is to examine whether the term structure can predict the exchange rate or not, and then to us this result to compare with the empirical result in which many researches claim that the real long term interest rate can predict the exchange rate very well. In the final step, we use the method of out of sample test to examine our model and random work model to make our examination more robust. In conclusion, our empirical research attests that the relationship between the term structure and the exchange rate is significantly negative. This result also shows that the ability of our model¡¦s prediction is better than that of others.