Bonds

Policy makers differ on what the neutral rate -- the rate that neither restricts nor spurs economic growth -- is and couch it in terms that don’t take account of the current high inflation environment.

The U.S. yield curve extended its recent flattening as investors evaluated the economic outlook amid tightening monetary policy and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Executives speak on the uncertainty created by the Russia-Ukraine war and Federal Reserve announcements.

The Fed is the drawcard among eight Group-of-20 members whose monetary officials are due this week to assess economic prospects.

The gains come even as the crisis spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens disrupt the supply of oil, natural gas and other key commodities, further fanning record high inflation expectations.

BlackRock Inc., Capital Group Companies and Legal & General Group Plc are the top holders of Russia’s dollar bonds, which lost almost half their value this week.

“This puts the performance of inflation solidly back into the limelight” with the “risk that higher prices with the backdrop of heightened geopolitical uncertainty will ultimately be stagflationary.”

The best-performing countries on human and labor rights have significantly lower bond market spreads compared to the worst, even when taking into account factors such as level of income.

Bonds tumbled across the world on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s latest hawkish pivot, with yields from Wellington to London breaching multi-year highs.

Russia’s troop buildup on the Ukraine border is now being cited by strategists as one of the main threats to global markets.