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The article discusses the consequences of the U.S. Federal Reserve's (Fed) interest rate reversal in 2019. Topics discussed include how the Fed's decision helped halt and partly reverse December 2018's stock sell-off, stress in the market for corporate bonds in December 2018 and implications of the rising value of the dollar.

THE NEWS Investors wary of taking on any risk actually bid down the yield on short-term Treasury notes to zero and briefly even below zero, meaning they were paying more to buy the notes than they will receive in principal and interest when the notes mature. BEHIND THE NEWS You know the financial markets are deeply nervous when a guaranteed loss on three-month Treasuries is seen as a better idea than taking a chance on any alternative investment, from stocks to bonds to commodities to bank deposits. Economists worry that such caution could slow a recovery by choking off investments in stocks and corporate bonds that businesses need to finance their operations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article reports that data from the U.S. Treasury Department show that foreign investors put $42.5 billion in American stocks and $68.6 billion in American corporate bonds and $42.5 billion in May 2007. The data show that American companies are becoming more popular in overseas. The article offers two charts and two graphs that depict net purchases of U.S. bonds and stocks by foreign investors.