Accounting year-end dispersion and seasonality in the Japanese corporate bond market |
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Authors: | Kenji Matsui |
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Institution: | 1. Graduate School of Business Administration , Kobe University , 2-1 Rokkodai-cho, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan kmatsui@b.kobe-u.ac.jp |
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Abstract: | Using monthly yield data on straight bonds, this article investigates seasonality in the Japanese corporate bond market. A statistical examination of spreads between the yield of each bond and a bond market index reveals that the yield spread consistently decreases from April to August, whereas it increases from September to December. Because accounting year-ends for most investors in Japan are concentrated in either March or December, this seasonality supports the hypotheses of tax-loss selling and window dressing. Moreover, the seasonality becomes more pronounced as the debt rating declines, consistent with the findings in previous studies investigating the US bond market. |
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Keywords: | exchange rate volatility economic growth panel data analysis |
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