article thumbnail

Sovereign Ratings, Default Risk and Markets: The Moody's Downgrade Aftermath!

Musings on Markets

On the debt front, one of the measures that ratings agencies use to assess a country's financial standing is its debt to GDP ratio, and it is undeniable that this statistic has trended upwards for the United States: The ramping up of US debt since 2008 is reflected in total federal debt rising from 80% of GDP in 2008 to more than 120% in 2024.

article thumbnail

Data Update 3: Inflation and its Ripple Effects!

Musings on Markets

Put simply, no central bank, no matter how powerful, can force market interest rates down, if inflation expectations stay low, or up, if investor are anticipating high inflation.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Trending Sources

article thumbnail

Data Update 2 for 2021: The Price of Risk!

Musings on Markets

If, on the other hand, investors are risk neutral, the price of risk will be zero, and investors will buy risky business, stocks and other investments, and settle for the risk free rate as the expected return. If you buy into this measure of equity risk premiums, consider its limitations.

article thumbnail

Use of Discounted Cash Flow Approaches in US GAAP Accounting

ThomsonReuters

The Codification often provides guidance on how to select a discount rate for a particular area of accounting. The Codification may require the use of a risk-free rate in some places and a risk-adjusted rate in others. Recent events have also impacted the components of the discount rate.

article thumbnail

Tesla's Trillion Dollar Moment: A Valuation Revisit!

Musings on Markets

My two most recent valuations were in June 2019 and January 2020, and I am going to go back to them, not just because they are recent, but because they led to investment decisions on my part. Between June 2019 and January 2020, the stock went on a tear, as the stock price more than tripled, and I revisited my Tesla valuation.

Start-ups 101
article thumbnail

Data Update 4 for 2021: The Hurdle Rate Question!

Musings on Markets

Going back to the start of this section, a company (say Ford) would require a higher cost of equity for a Nigerian project than for an equivalent German project (using a US $ risk free rate of 1% and a beta of 1.1 Cost of equity in US $ for German project = 1% + 1.1

article thumbnail

Data Update 3 for 2023: Inflation and Interest Rates

Musings on Markets

Returns in 2022 In my first classes in finance, as a student, I was taught that the US treasury rate was a risk free rate, with the logic being that since the US treasury could always print money, it would not default.