When corporations and governments want to borrow money, they often look to bond markets abroad for a wider pool of investors and lower interest rates than they'd find at home. That's why many debt issuers create bond offerings tailored for international markets, for both institutional and individual investors.
For example, in addition to issuing bonds in its own currency, a country may issue bonds in dollars for sale in the U.S. market or in pounds for sale in the U.K.
What that creates for investors is a way to add international diversification to their fixed-income portfolios without the currency rate risk that can reduce return if the value of their home currency gains value in relation to the currency of the country where a bond is issued. (They still face interest rate risk,
as any bond investor does, as well as the credit risk of default.)
One way to add international bonds to your portfolio is to invest in an international bond fund, which has greater access to international bond markets than you could probably achieve on your own. Another is to buy bonds issued directly in your home currency.
Jeffrey Rosensweig, Goizueta Business School, Emory University
Jeffrey Rosensweig, Goizueta Business School, Emory University 
