one-year implied forward rate one year from now question

Wallace presents the relationships between spot and forward rates according to the pure expectations theory. Which of the following is closest to the one-year implied forward rate one year from now? 1 year spot rate is 5.2498 2 year spot rate is 5.7492 A) 6.58%. B) 5.75%. C) 6.25%.

I guess everyone is asleep. This is the answer: Your answer: A was incorrect. The correct answer was C) 6.25%. The 2 year spot rate is 5.7492 meaning the return that should be earned after 2 years would be 5.7492 + 5.7492 = 11.498%. The 1 year spot rate is 5.2498 therefore the 1 year forward rate 1 year from now must be the difference between the 11.498% earned over the 2 year spot rates and the 1 year spot rate. Thus the 1 year forward rate 1 year from now is 11.498 − 5.2498 = 6.2486 or 6.25%. ** I thought we used this formula: Implied Forward Rate1,2 = (1 + y2)2 / (1 + y1) − 1 The answer is the same… How you y’all compute forward rates?

That’s how I would do it too. The way they described it looks weird and will get very complex if you try it for more complex forward rate calculations.

OK…will give it a shot although am sleepy now…it 2.34 here. The formula I have from L1 was: 2 year spot rate ( given) add to 1 and then raise to power 2 = ( equal) the 1 year spot rate (given) X 1 year forward rate Work the math, find the forward rate. 1.11829/1.0525 - 1= 6.25% I tried the first option and you do get answer A, because it is compounded, which is what it should be, the interest is compounded, so am curious that they want u to just add together, and the substract the first spot rate…Interesting???anyone>.

(1…057492)^2/(1.052498)=1.0625 Hence answer is 6.25%

bring it back old school level 1 styles

Their method is simply a linear approximation. It’ll get you close if there are only a couple of compounding periods. Remember the linear approximation of the International Fisher Relation? It’s along those lines.

Answer: C 1 year spot rate is 5.2498 2 year spot rate is 5.7492 Therefore, 1 year implied forward rate 1 year from now = 2 x 5.7492 - 5.2498 = 6.25% just remember, you should be indifferent to be investing say 100$ at these 2 options Invest it at 5.7492% for 2 years OR invest it at 5.2498 first year, and x% second year. the solution presented, implies that.

You can use either: a) (1 + r1) * (1 + f1) = (1 + r2)^2 which yields f1 = (1 + r2)^2 / (1 + r1) - 1 and so f1 = 6.2510 % b) f1 = 2*r2 - r1 which yields f1 = 6.2486 % Formula a) is exact, formula b) is an approximation that will usually be close enough and save you a few calculator punches on the exam. In fact, if you expand a) : (1 + r1) * (1 + f1) = (1 + r2)^2 1 + r1 + f1 + r1 * f1 = 1 + 2 * r2 + r2^2 Here comes the approximation: r2^2 and r1 * f1 are small, plus they cancel out to some degree. So we’ll drop those (and also the “1” on each side). Now we have r1 + f1 = 2 * r2 which leads to f1 = 2 * r2 - r1