■ Yield curve changes are being driven by unconventional policies and technical factors, which make the moves harder to interpret.
■ Curve flattening in 2016 has resulted from changes to money market rules at the short end and central bank purchases at the long end.
■ Banks, municipalities and other borrowers are beginning to feel the pinch from rising Libor rates.
■ Fundamentals remain the most important consideration for bond investors and the most valuable guide for pursuing medium- to longer-term goals.

How demographics, reform and capital are unlocking the next wave of emerging markets opportunity

■ High-yield bonds occupy a special capital market niche: They have offered better risk-adjusted returns than equities and lower interest-rate sensitivity than the broad fixedincome market.
■ To date, high-yield bonds have been less vulnerable to the adverse effects of rising rates than other fixed-income sectors and have provided positive total returns in rising rate markets.
■ Adding high-yield bonds to a broad fixed-income allocation has improved portfolio efficiency, based on 10-year hypothetical performance of blended portfolios.
■ Recent problems in the energy sector sparked a broad sell-off of high yield, resulting in value opportunities for investors with the expertise and diligence to select quality issuers.