Yields Past 100% Just Put #Lebanon Debt Into Venezuela Territory - Bloomberg

Yields Past 100% Just Put Lebanon Debt Into Venezuela Territory - Bloomberg:

The political crisis in Lebanon has sent the yields on some of its dollar bonds into triple digits.

Rates on the government’s $1.2 billion of notes maturing in March next year climbed 15 percentage points on Tuesday to 103%. They were at 13% five weeks ago, just before the start of nationwide protests that led to the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri and exacerbated the nation’s economic strife.

With Lebanon viewed by many bond traders as a default waiting to happen, cash prices have become more important than yields as they factor in potential recovery rates. That’s inverted the government’s curve and distorted yields at the shorter end. The price of Lebanon’s 2020 debt is 78 cents on the dollar, while that of its April 2021 securities is 56 cents.