Question 1

An interest rate is 5% per annum with continuous compounding.What is the equivalent rate with semiannual compounding?

Accepted Answer

A)  5.06%
B)  5.03%
C)  4.97%
D)  4.94% A

Question 2

The six-month zero rate is 8% per annum with semiannual compounding.The price of a one-year bond that provides a coupon of 6% per annum semiannually is 97.What is the one-year continuously compounded zero rate?

Accepted Answer

A)  8.02%
B)  8.52%
C)  9.02%
D)  9.52% C

Question 3

The zero curve is upward sloping.Define X as the 1-year par yield,Y as the 1-year zero rate and Z as the forward rate for the period between 1 and 1.5 year.Which of the following is true?

Accepted Answer

A)  X is less than Y which is less than Z
B)  Y is less than X which is less than Z
C)  X is less than Z which is less than Y
D)  Z is less than Y which is less than X A

Question 4

Which of following describes forward rates?

Accepted Answer

A)  Interest rates implied by current zero rates for future periods of time
B)  Interest rate earned on an investment that starts today and last for n-years in the future without coupons
C)  The coupon rate that causes a bond price to equal its par (or principal) value
D)  A single discount rate that gives the value of a bond equal to its market price when applied to all cash flows

Question 5

Bootstrapping involves

Accepted Answer

A)  Calculating the yield on a bond
B)  Working from short maturity instruments to longer maturity instruments determining zero rates at each step
C)  Working from long maturity instruments to shorter maturity instruments determining zero rates at each step
D)  The calculation of par yields

Question 6

The yield curve is flat at 6% per annum.What is the value of an FRA where the holder receives interest at the rate of 8% per annum for a six-month period on a principal of $1,000 starting in two years? All rates are compounded semiannually.

Accepted Answer

A)  $9.12
B)  $9.02
C)  $8.88
D)  $8.63

Question 7

Under liquidity preference theory,which of the following is always true?

Accepted Answer

A)  The forward rate is higher than the spot rate when both have the same maturity
B)  Forward rates are unbiased predictors of expected future spot rates
C)  The spot rate for a certain maturity is higher than the par yield for that maturity
D)  Forward rates are higher than expected future spot rates

Question 8

Which of the following is true?

Accepted Answer

A)  When interest rates in the economy increase.all bond prices increase
B)  As its coupon increases.a bond's price decreases
C)  Longer maturity bonds are always worth more that shorter maturity bonds when the coupon rates are the same
D)  None of the above

Question 9

The compounding frequency for an interest rate defines

Accepted Answer

A)  The frequency with which interest is paid
B)  A unit of measurement for the interest rate
C)  The relationship between the annual interest rate and the monthly interest rate
D)  None of the above

Question 10

A repo rate is

Accepted Answer

A)  An uncollateralized rate
B)  A rate where the credit risk is relatively high
C)  The rate implicit in a transaction where securities are sold and bought back at a higher price
D)  None of the above

Question 11

At what interest rate does a government borrow in its own currency?

Accepted Answer

A)  Treasury rate
B)  LIBOR
C)  LIBID
D)  Repo rate

Question 12

An interest rate is 12% per annum with semiannual compounding.What is the equivalent rate with quarterly compounding?

Accepted Answer

A)  11.83%
B)  11.66%
C)  11.77%
D)  11.92%

Question 13

Since the credit crisis that started in 2007 which of the following have derivatives traders started to use as the risk-free rate for some transactions?

Accepted Answer

A)  The Treasury rate
B)  The LIBOR rate
C)  The repo rate
D)  The overnight indexed swap rate

Question 14

An interest rate is 6% per annum with annual compounding.What is the equivalent rate with continuous compounding?

Accepted Answer

A)  5.79%
B)  6.21%
C)  5.83%
D)  6.18%

Question 15

Which of the following is true of LIBOR?

Accepted Answer

A)  The LIBOR rate is free of credit risk
B)  A LIBOR rate is lower than the Treasury rate when the two have the same maturity
C)  It is a rate used when borrowing and lending takes place between banks
D)  It is subject to favorable tax treatment in the U.S.

Question 16

Prior to the credit crisis that started in 2007 which of the following was the proxy used by derivatives traders for the risk-free rate?

Accepted Answer

A)  The Treasury rate
B)  The LIBOR rate
C)  The repo rate
D)  The overnight indexed swap rate

Question 17

The two-year zero rate is 6% and the three year zero rate is 6.5%.What is the forward rate for the third year? All rates are continuously compounded.

Accepted Answer

A)  6.75%
B)  7.0%
C)  7.25%
D)  7.5%

Question 18

The six month and one-year rates are 3% and 4% per annum with semiannual compounding.Which of the following is closest to the one-year par yield expressed with semiannual compounding?

Accepted Answer

A)  3.99%
B)  3.98%
C)  3.97%
D)  3.96%

Question 19

The zero curve is downward sloping.Define X as the 1-year par yield,Y as the 1-year zero rate and Z as the forward rate for the period between 1 and 1.5 year.Which of the following is true?

Accepted Answer

A)  X is less than Y which is less than Z
B)  Y is less than X which is less than Z
C)  X is less than Z which is less than Y
D)  Z is less than Y which is less than X

Question 20

Given a choice between 5-year and 1-year instruments most people would choose 5-year instruments when borrowing and 1-year instruments when lending.Which of the following is a theory consistent with this observation?

Accepted Answer

A)  Expectations theory
B)  Market segmentation theory
C)  Liquidity preference theory
D)  Maturity preference theory

Exam 4: Interest Rates

An interest rate is 5% per annum with continuous compounding.What is the equivalent rate with semiannual compounding?

The six-month zero rate is 8% per annum with semiannual compounding.The price of a one-year bond that provides a coupon of 6% per annum semiannually is 97.What is the one-year continuously compounded zero rate?

The zero curve is upward sloping.Define X as the 1-year par yield,Y as the 1-year zero rate and Z as the forward rate for the period between 1 and 1.5 year.Which of the following is true?

Which of following describes forward rates?

Bootstrapping involves

The yield curve is flat at 6% per annum.What is the value of an FRA where the holder receives interest at the rate of 8% per annum for a six-month period on a principal of $1,000 starting in two years? All rates are compounded semiannually.

Under liquidity preference theory,which of the following is always true?

Which of the following is true?

The compounding frequency for an interest rate defines

A repo rate is

At what interest rate does a government borrow in its own currency?

An interest rate is 12% per annum with semiannual compounding.What is the equivalent rate with quarterly compounding?

Since the credit crisis that started in 2007 which of the following have derivatives traders started to use as the risk-free rate for some transactions?

An interest rate is 6% per annum with annual compounding.What is the equivalent rate with continuous compounding?

Which of the following is true of LIBOR?

Prior to the credit crisis that started in 2007 which of the following was the proxy used by derivatives traders for the risk-free rate?

The two-year zero rate is 6% and the three year zero rate is 6.5%.What is the forward rate for the third year? All rates are continuously compounded.

The six month and one-year rates are 3% and 4% per annum with semiannual compounding.Which of the following is closest to the one-year par yield expressed with semiannual compounding?

The zero curve is downward sloping.Define X as the 1-year par yield,Y as the 1-year zero rate and Z as the forward rate for the period between 1 and 1.5 year.Which of the following is true?

Given a choice between 5-year and 1-year instruments most people would choose 5-year instruments when borrowing and 1-year instruments when lending.Which of the following is a theory consistent with this observation?