11.   Danish and Irish bonds were the third- and fourth-best local currency bond investments.

12.   Dollar gains boost bonds by increasing the return foreign investors earn on bond investments in terms of their own currencies.

13.   Expectations that the Fed was embarking on a series of rate increases would take a bigger toll on bond investments, he said.

14.   For his part, Somers says most of his problems with customers derived from a single corporate bond investment that went sour.

15.   He worked at Norwest Corp. in Minneapolis for five years, managing muni bond and government bond investments for clients.

16.   Higher rates hurt stocks by slowing the economy and making bond investments more tempting to investors.

17.   Higher interest rates raise the cost at which some investors finance their bond investments.

18.   Higher rates are bad for banks because they erode the value of bond investments and make loans more expensive for companies and consumers.

19.   If the cuts are implemented life insurers will be able to meet more of their obligations through bond investment.

20.   Instead, they may simply suffer through the next few years with depressed earnings because their bond investments pay interest rates that are below market.