Forty percent of U.S. junk bonds to default by 2013: BofA

NEW YORK (Reuters) - About 40 percent of all U.S. junk bonds outstanding in late 2008 will likely default by 2013 as government aid measures end and a wall of corporate debt comes due, Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Thursday.

By contrast, the cumulative five-year default rate was about 30 percent in the last two default cycles, Bank of America said in a report.