Asked by Michael Megler on Jul 09, 2024

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This morning, Marty bought a 4% coupon bond at par value. The bond pays semi-annual interest and has twenty years to maturity. By what percentage will the price of Marty's bond change if market interest rates rise by 1.5% tonight?

A) 18.06%
B) 8.19%
C) 4.10%
D) -8.19%
E) -18.06%

Coupon Bond

A debt security that pays the holder a fixed interest rate (coupon) over the bond's life, with the principal amount repaid at maturity.

Market Interest Rates

The prevailing rate of interest available in the marketplace for securities, loans, and deposits, determined by supply and demand dynamics.

Par Value

The face value of a bond or the stock value stated in the corporate charter, which is the nominal value of a security.

  • Understand the relationship between bond prices and market interest rates.
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AL
Aleena LatimoreJul 10, 2024
Final Answer :
E
Explanation :
The price of a bond moves inversely to changes in interest rates. If interest rates rise, the price of existing bonds falls because new bonds are issued at the higher rate, making the older, lower-yielding bonds less attractive. The percentage change in a bond's price for a given change in yields is measured by its duration. For a 20-year bond with semi-annual payments and a 4% coupon, the duration will be less than 20 years but still significant, indicating a substantial sensitivity to interest rate changes. A 1.5% increase in market interest rates would significantly decrease the bond's price, and given the options, a decrease of -18.06% is plausible for a long-duration bond like the one described.