Many European investors are struggling to secure decent levels of income from their bond investments as European Central Bank (ECB) policy drives regional bond yields relentlessly lower. Around 50% of Europe’s sovereign bonds yield less than zero.
And now that ECB bond-buying has spread into the corporate bond market, the sub-zero interest-rate trend has taken root there as well. Well over 10% of Europe’s investment-grade corporate bonds currently sport negative yields and more than 80% yield between 0% and 2%.