Hard Currency

Hard Currency

A currency in which investors have confidence, such as that of an economically and politically stable country. Hard currencies serve as means of payment settlements because they do not suffer from sharp exchange rate fluctuations. Large, international transactions are often settled in one hard currency or other. The market to buy and sell hard currencies is especially liquid, even by the standards of foreign exchange trading. The price of a hard currency often remains stable in the short-term. Examples of hard currencies include the U.S. dollar, the British pound, the euro, and the Japanese yen.

Corporate Inflation-Linked Securities

Corporate Inflation-Linked Securities

Corporate debt financing securities that offer their holders protection against fluctuations in the rate of inflation as measured by the consumer price index (CPI). The yields of these securities adjust monthly with respect to the current rate of inflation. Although they are not as common as conventional debt instruments, inflation-protected corporate debt can provide an investor with a balanced risk exposure: these securities pose all of the normal risks associated with regular corporate debt securities - such as default risk - but they remove the possibility of inflationary changes eroding their real returns.