We show that machine learning methods, in particular extreme trees and neural networks (NNs), provide strong statistical evidence in favor of bond return predictability. NN forecasts based on macroeconomic and yield information translate into economic gains that are larger than those obtained...

The literature on using yield curves to forecast recessions typically measures the term spread as the difference between the 10-year and the three-month Treasury rates. Furthermore, using the term spread constrains the long- and short-term interest rates to have the same absolute effect on the...

We introduce a robust, flexible and easy-to-implement method for estimating the yield curve from Treasury securities. This method is non-parametric and optimally learns basis functions in reproducing Hilbert spaces with an economically motivated smoothness reward. We provide a closed-form...

Following the financial crisis of 2008, the regulators established a stress testing framework known as comprehensive capital analysis and review (CCAR). The regulatory stress scenarios are macroeconomic and do not define stress values for all the relevant risk factors. In particular, only three...

We use machine learning methods to examine the power of Treasury term spreads and other financial market and macroeconomic variables to forecast US recessions, vis-à-vis probit regression. In particular we propose a novel strategy for conducting cross-validation on classifiers trained with...

In this paper, we investigate the forecasting ability of the yield curve in terms of the U.S. real GDP cycle. More specifically, within a Machine Learning (ML) framework, we use data from a variety of short (treasury bills) and long term interest rates (bonds) for the period from 1976:Q3 to...

Some countries have announced national benchmark rates while some others have been working on the recent trend in which the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) will be retired at the end of 2021. Considering that Turkey announced the Turkish Lira Overnight Reference Interest Rate (TLREF), this...

The method of the Wigner-Ville function proposed by Wigner, (1932) and Ville (1947) is widely used in quantum statistical mechanics and signal processing and historically preceded the continuous-time wavelets. (Gabor, 1946) Here it is proposed for the studies of the financial time series. One of...

The standard way to summarize the yield curve is to use the first three principal components of the yield curve, resulting in level, slope and curvature factors. Yields, however, are non-stationary. We analyze the first three principal components of yield changes, which correspond to changes in...