Sovereign credit spreads

Marliese Uhrig-Homburg

Journal of Banking & Finance, 2013, vol. 37, issue 11, 4217-4225

Abstract: The paper develops a structural credit risk model to study sovereign credit risk and the dynamics of sovereign credit spreads. The model features endogenous default and recovery rates that both depend on the interaction between domestic output fluctuations and global macroeconomic conditions. We show that sovereigns choose to default at higher levels of economic output once global macroeconomic conditions are bad. This yields to default rates and credit spreads that are substantially higher compared to normal times. We derive closed-form expressions for sovereign debt values and default times and focus on the dynamics of sovereign credit spreads. As opposed to standard theories of sovereign debt, this paper’s structural model generates much richer default patterns and non-linearities through regime-shifts in the global macroeconomic environment. Moreover, changes in the global environment reveal the interconnectedness of the financial system.

Keywords: Sovereign borrowing; Credit spreads; Macroeconomic conditions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F34 G12 G13 G15 H63 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jbfina:v:37:y:2013:i:11:p:4217-4225

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbankfin.2013.07.002

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