I have a friend who is investing in corporate bonds. How do these differ from government and other types of bonds? Are they more risky?
Corporate bonds are indeed somewhat more risky than government bonds or government-guaranteed bonds. Imagine owning a bond that had been issued by Confederation Life or Campeau Corp. (or more recently, Enron or WorldCom). There is a risk the issuer may not be able to pay off the bond at maturity. Some corporate bonds are very safe due to the solid position of the underlying corporation but, as we have seen, this is sometimes not obvious (recall Bre-X?). Corporate bonds may also have conversion features into the common stock of the corporation and this may give them another edge of potential gain since as the stock improves in value, the bond may rise as a result.
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