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Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Bonds and cash just aren't that safe

Bonds are seen as safe. So is cash. But, that's not necessarily true.

For starters, bonds and cash are susceptible to higher tax rates than stocks. Whether anyone likes it or not, interest on bonds and cash are taxed at much higher rates than dividends and capital gains on stocks. That differential may change with new tax laws, but even then, stocks are likely to be taxed at lower rates.

Most significantly, bonds and cash are more prone to suffer from the impacts of inflation. That may not seem as dangerous as a 50% stock market plunge, but 4.14% inflation over 10 years will do the same thing (and is much more likely to be a permanent 50% loss versus a temporary one for stocks). Does anyone really want to bet that inflation won't be above 4% over the next 10 years considering huge government debt and budget deficits?

Finally, bonds and cash can be defaulted on. This is probably the risk most people dismiss as too unlikely, but a low likelihood is not the same as no likelihood. Bonds are more likely to default than cash, and stocks are more likely to go to zero than bonds, but bonds are not without default risk. If you hold government bonds and think they can't default, a re-reading of the history of Germany, Argentina, Russia and the Confederate States of America is in order. Think cash is default free? Check again. History has many examples including Weimar Germany, France after the South Seas Bubble, or any other example of cash not backed by specie (not yet and never aren't the same thing).

Bonds and cash can be safer than stocks, but not always. Bonds are a promise to pay, but that promise can be broken. Cash is a note (debt) issued by the Federal Reserve as legal tender, and that promise too can be broken. Bonds and cash are much more impacted by inflation and have higher tax rates than stocks. They are not without risk.

I was reminded of this recently when I read that individual investors were generally selling stocks to buy bonds over the last year. They are rushing for a safe haven to avoid the pain of another downdraft. In the meantime, they have missed the market rally and are hoping to time the market. The history of individual investors, especially as a herd, being right on something like this is extremely poor.

The very fact that so many retail investors are racing to bonds together as a herd is enough to remind me of how badly bonds and cash can do. The next couple of years are likely to remind investors that not even bonds or cash are completely safe.

Nothing in this blog should be considered investment, financial, tax, or legal advice. The opinions, estimates and projections contained herein are subject to change without notice. Information throughout this blog has been obtained from sources believed to be accurate and reliable, but such accuracy cannot be guaranteed.

6 comments:

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