Amid inflation, global bonds enter their first bear market in a generation

Soaring inflation and the steep interest-rate hikes deployed by policy makers in response have brought to an end a four-decade bull market in bonds

Under pressure from central bankers determined to quash inflation even at the cost of a recession, global bonds slumped into their first bear market in a generation.

The Bloomberg Global Aggregate Total Return Index of government and investment-grade corporate bonds has fallen more than 20% below its 2021 peak, the biggest drawdown since its 1990 inception. Officials from the US to Europe have hammered home the importance of tighter monetary policy in recent days, building on the strong hawkish message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the recent Jackson Hole symposium.

Soaring inflation and the steep interest-rate hikes deployed