US TIPS

[helfordpirate]

That's also my understanding .... but whether that means that TIPS are a positive-yielding shorter-duration alternative to linkers depends on what role inflation-linked bonds are playing in your portfolio. If you are a long term accumulator looking for a diversified bond-like asset that will provide some inflation protection then looks like a reasonable alternative- with less interest-rate risk to boot. If you are a deaccumulator spending GBP then what you phrase as "some interim deviations" may be too much - UK CPI in the mid-70s peaked at 24% whereas US was only 14% or so (I dont know what the currency impact was). So in terms of protection from unexpected inflation not so good - linkers even with negative-real yields would have done a better job. Presumably that's why UK pension funds with their onerous responsibility to match their assets to future liabilities keep buying them - and have made linkers one of the best performing asset classes in the last few years (despite no yield)!

(btw I believe TIPS will be subject to CGT whereas linkers are not - obviously if held via a fund/ETF then they both are.)