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High yield spreads, real economic activity, and the financial accelerator

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  • De Pace, Pierangelo
  • Weber, Kyle D.

Abstract

We study the leading properties of 30 US high yield spreads for economic growth between 1996 and 2012 and show that they disappeared in the second half of the 2000s. Our empirical findings demonstrate the unreliability of high yield spreads as leading indicators and cast doubts on the existence of a strong and functioning financial accelerator in recent years.

Suggested Citation

  • De Pace, Pierangelo & Weber, Kyle D., 2013. "High yield spreads, real economic activity, and the financial accelerator," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 121(3), pages 346-355.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:121:y:2013:i:3:p:346-355
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2013.08.027
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bernanke, Ben S. & Gertler, Mark & Gilchrist, Simon, 1999. "The financial accelerator in a quantitative business cycle framework," Handbook of Macroeconomics, in: J. B. Taylor & M. Woodford (ed.), Handbook of Macroeconomics, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 21, pages 1341-1393, Elsevier.
    2. Gertler, Mark & Lown, Cara S, 1999. "The Information in the High-Yield Bond Spread for the Business Cycle: Evidence and Some Implications," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 15(3), pages 132-150, Autumn.
    3. Frank K. Reilly & David J. Wright & James A. Gentry, 2009. "Historic Changes in the High Yield Bond Market," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 21(3), pages 65-79, June.
    4. Ben S. Bernanke & Mark Gertler, 1995. "Inside the Black Box: The Credit Channel of Monetary Policy Transmission," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 9(4), pages 27-48, Fall.
    5. De Pace, Pierangelo & Weber, Kyle D., 2016. "The time-varying leading properties of the high yield spread in the United States," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 203-230.
    6. Pierangelo De Pace, 2013. "Gross Domestic Product Growth Predictions Through The Yield Spread: Time‐Variation And Structural Breaks," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(1), pages 1-24, January.
    7. Mody, Ashoka & Taylor, Mark P., 2004. "Financial predictors of real activity and the financial accelerator," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 82(2), pages 167-172, February.
    8. Ashoka Mody & Mark P. Taylor, 2003. "The High-Yield Spread as a Predictor of Real Economic Activity: Evidence of a Financial Accelerator for the United States," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 50(3), pages 1-3.
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    Cited by:

    1. Seitz, Franz & Baumann, Ursel & Albuquerque, Bruno, 2015. "The information content of money and credit for US activity," Working Paper Series 1803, European Central Bank.
    2. Paccagnini, Alessia, 2016. "The macroeconomic determinants of the US term structure during the Great Moderation," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 52(PA), pages 216-225.
    3. Kiss, Tamás & Nguyen, Hoang & Österholm, Pär, 2022. "The Relation between the High-Yield Bond Spread and the Unemployment Rate in the Euro Area," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 46(PA).
    4. Shahzad, Syed Jawad Hussain & Bouri, Elie & Hernandez, Jose Areola & Roubaud, David, 2021. "Causal nexus between crude oil and US corporate bonds," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 577-589.
    5. Albuquerque, Bruno & Baumann, Ursel & Seitz, Franz, 2016. "What does money and credit tell us about real activity in the United States?," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 328-347.
    6. De Pace, Pierangelo & Weber, Kyle D., 2016. "The time-varying leading properties of the high yield spread in the United States," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 203-230.
    7. Evgenidis, Anastasios & Papadamou, Stephanos & Siriopoulos, Costas, 2020. "The yield spread's ability to forecast economic activity: What have we learned after 30 years of studies?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 221-232.
    8. Kühl, Michael, 2014. "The financial accelerator and market-based debt instruments: A role for maturities?," Discussion Papers 08/2014, Deutsche Bundesbank.
    9. Yutaka Kurihara, 2014. "Does High Yield Spread Dampen Economic Growth?: The Case of US-Japan," International Journal of Finance & Banking Studies, Center for the Strategic Studies in Business and Finance, vol. 3(2), pages 01-09, April.
    10. repec:ecb:ecbwps:20141803 is not listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    High yield spreads; Leading properties; Financial accelerator;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C22 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes
    • E43 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Interest Rates: Determination, Term Structure, and Effects
    • E44 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy

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