Bond traders suffer worst rout in 3 years

New York

AFTER all central bankers have done since the financial crisis to prop up bond prices, it didn't take much for them to send the global debt market reeling. Bonds worldwide lost 2.9 per cent during the month through Oct 27, according to the Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate Index, which tracks everything from sovereign obligations to mortgage-backed debt to corporate borrowings.

The last time the bond world was dealt such a blow was May 2013, when then-Federal Reserve chairman Ben S Bernanke signalled that the central bank might slow its unprecedented bond buying.

Europe led the losses that reverberated worldwide during the week as signs of accelerating inflation and economic growth spurred speculation that the E…