HOW can governments borrow most cheaply? The answer matters hugely for taxpayers. Take America: it has $ 14trn in outstanding national debt, fully three-quarters of GDP. Interest payments alone are expected to reach $ 280bn this fiscal year—ie, more than three times the combined budgets of the Departments of Education, Labour and Commerce.
The problem largely comes down to deciding how much long, medium and short-dated debt to sell. Almost every country issues a combination of these maturities. In the current low interest-rate environment, however, many argue that governments should sell proportionately more long-dated bonds to make sure they are able to pay historically low rates for many decades to come, thereby saving taxpayers money in the long run.
Some countries have already ploughed ahead. In recent years Britain, Canada and Italy have sold 50-year bonds; Mexico, Belgium and Ireland have issued 100-year debt. The latest country to flirt with the idea is America: last month the Treasury sent out a survey to bond-dealers to gauge market appetite for 40-, 50- and 100-year bonds. On May 3rd officials said that Steve Mnuchin, the…
The Economist: Finance and economics
