Replication data for: What Makes US Government Bonds Safe Assets?

US government bonds are considered to be the world's safe store of value, especially during periods of economic turmoil such as the events of 2008. But what makes US government bonds "safe assets"? We highlight coordination among investors, and build a model in which two countries with heterogeneous sizes issue bonds that may be chosen as safe asset. Our model illustrates the benefit of a large absolute debt size as safe asset investors have "nowhere else to go" in equilibrium, and the large country's bonds are chosen as the safe asset. Moreover, the effect becomes stronger in crisis periods.

美国政府债券被视为全球价值储存的稳固保障，尤其是在如2008年经济动荡等经济混乱时期。然而，究竟是什么使得美国政府债券成为所谓的“安全资产”？本研究着重于投资者之间的协调作用，并构建了一个模型，其中两个规模异质的国家发行的债券可能被选为安全资产。本模型阐释了大规模绝对债务作为安全资产的优势，因为在均衡状态下，安全资产投资者“别无他选”，大型国家的债券因此被选为安全资产。此外，在危机时期，这种效应更为显著。