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Hi there,
very Confused about negative and positive duration positions where they show up in 1) Risk Mgt of swap strategies and in 2) MBS…:-(
Negative duration: does it mean to ‘reduce duration’ ? – or hold a position that moves directly with interest rates – eg wanting to add a negative duration position like a pay-fixed swap, receive floating to the fixed income portfolio: pay fixed side -0.75 and receive floating side + 0.125, = -0.625
does this mean simply that a fixed rate borrower gains (+) when int rates rise (+) ?
Positive duration: does it mean to ‘increase duration’ ? – or hold a position that moves inversely to int rates – eg wanting to add a positive duration position like a pay-floating -0.125 and receive-fixed +0.75, swap, to the fixed income portfolio = +0.625
Does this simply mean that a floating rate borrower gains (+) when int rates fall, (neg) ?
In MBSs: Principal Only notes have a positive duration and Interest-Only notes have a negative duration.
I thought that POs dur incr, as when int rates rise, prepayments slower, and POs life/duration gets longer, bad, so their price falls, as underlying mortgage pool duration longer: does ‘positive’ mean a longer life of the PO ?
IOs have negative duration as when int rates fall, faster prepymts terminate the underlying interest-only pool, and the value of the IO falls – what is the negative position, the shorter life of the IO ?
Head is swimming…………..feel faint 😉 !!
Thanks v much for all the moral and mental support !
