PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Lara Cathcart AU - Lina El-Jahel AU - Leonard Evans TI - The Correlation Structure of the CDS Market: <em>An Empirical Investigation</em> AID - 10.3905/jfi.2013.22.4.053 DP - 2013 Mar 31 TA - The Journal of Fixed Income PG - 53--74 VI - 22 IP - 4 4099 - https://pm-research.com/content/22/4/53.short 4100 - https://pm-research.com/content/22/4/53.full AB - Using an extensive data set of credit default swap (CDS) spreads on U.S. firms, we investigate the correlation structure of the CDS market. For comparison, we also examine the correlation structure of their equity returns. We find that although industry affiliation plays a central role in CDS correlations, so too does rating classification above and below investment grade. By contrast, the correlation structure of equity returns is characterized by industry affiliation. Our results highlight differences in the organization of these markets and the salience of the investment-grade boundary.TOPICS: Credit default swaps, statistical methods