Description: The investment grade corporate bond market continues to expand in size and is now nearing record levels. The Bloomberg Barclay’s U.S. Corporate Bond Index, representative of the U.S. corporate bond market, now measures over $5 trillion, nearing its all-time high compared to its $2 trillion mark in 2008. The BBB-rated segment of the index has experienced significant growth, and now represents more than 50% of the corporate bond market. Corporate bond market risk has increased beyond what the ratings indicate. Today's investing landscape of relatively low yields, higher corporate leverage and a later-stage credit cycle presents challenges for both insurance and pension portfolios where corporate bonds are a core investment. <br> <br>With representation from a U.S. portfolio manager, Canadian portfolio manager and an investment consultant, attendees will get a full perspective of the North American environment and how to apply this information when making client recommendations.

Description: This article discusses Asset-Backed Securities as a low volatility alternative to Intermediate Government Bonds.

Description: Measuring Fair Value for Participation Units of Stable Value Pooled Funds

Description: This article discusses how FHLB advances, i.e. low cost loans, can supply valuable risk management benefits. By carefully structuring an advance to mature coincident with the anticipated premium inflows generated by insurance products, a company can largely eliminate future net cash flows and consequently the need to invest them in uncertain capital markets.

Description: Presented at May 2002 Spring Meeting. Our lecturer presents findings from a research project relating to the Cox, Ingersoll &amp; Ross model of interest rates, including an effective way of pricing general interest rate derivatives and pricing bonds.

Description: This article discusses the magnitude and impact of the subprime crisis.

Description: In this paper, the relationship of convexity to the assumption of parallel shifts is explored, and new convexity measures are developed to reflect nonparallel shifts. These new measures can differ dramatically from the traditional values, providing insight into when convexity does not have to be good and when it does.

Description: This paper summarizes default experience on bonds from 1900 through 1987. Although the information is more extensive for publicly traded bonds, the paper includes some information on private placements, some of which is not otherwise available.

Description: This discussion is on asset management for an insurance company, including issues of varying investment strategies for different product lines through various asset segmentation approaches, management of the assets supporting surplus, and asset/liability risk management considerations

Description: This session from the 1984 SOA New York City Meeting discusses financial futures and options, an example of using options to hedge a risk, investment optimization and taxation. From Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 10, No. 3