How to defend the idea that interest rates will rise?
If one thinks that interest rates in the United States and the euro zone will rise significantly in the future, trends in debt (public debt, despite central banks’ purchases, and private debt) are obviously more of a concern than if one thinks that interest rates will remain low for a long time. It is well known that the low interest rates have two main causes: expansionary monetary policies and excess global savings, leading to strong demand for risk-free bonds. For interest rates to rise sharply, both causes must therefore disappear: Monetary policy must become more restrictive, either as inflation returns or as central banks respond to asset price bubbles. Inflation could return for structural reasons: rising wages at the bottom, population ageing, return to regional value chains, energy transition; The excess global savings must disappear, which could happen if fiscal deficits remain high while population ageing drives down the private savings rate; or if savers and investors switch from risk-free to risky savings, leading demand for risk-free bonds to fall.