This paper investigates the behaviour of the volatility of returns in bond and stock markets for a sample of eight countries using very long samples of data. Volatility has been high during episodes of economic and political turbulence, in particular during the interwar period. Moreover,...

We analyze the main forces affecting financial system pro-cyclicality (the fact that developments in the financial sector can amplify business cycle fluctuations). We first review some major structural developments in financial markets that may influence pro-cyclicality and that have been...

The procyclicality of financial systems has received an increasing amount of attention from policymakers, academics, and international organizations in recent years. This heightened interest stems from a combination of the ongoing globalization of finance, the role of the financial sector in...

Securitisation can transform ordinarily illiquid or risky assets into more liquid or less risky ones. Despite the recent rapid growth of securitisation, the Latin American market remains in its infancy, as reflected in the size and type of assets involved in transactions. Because of its...