Hi all,

Edit: Since I made this post I learned the two options I was comparing have different issue date, e.g. one with coupon 8 is from 2000, whereas the one with 1.5 (I mistakenly wrote 2) from 2012. They have the same maturity though. So the question is, is it still more meaningful to get the 8 one, even though the Bid Price is higher? Is there some math involved to know which one is more valuable/better? I found some article on how bonds work, so I'm reading more on that.

Sorry for the very basic question but I am super new to the concept of Fixed Income/GIC. I have been using TD Webbroker for a while now but only to buy/sell stocks and ETFs. Now, I am looking into Fixed Income and GIC and I am wondering how I can find one. I got familiar with TD e Series, so I'll look into that too but for the Fixed Income I wonder what are the factors to look into when choosing one.

I see different categories of Fixed Income, let's say I look under Government of Canada and I see different options with different maturity dates and "coupon" numbers. Are these the factors I should look into? I assume Bid/Ask are only important for the amount that I want to invest in.

Am I understanding it correctly that coupon is the percentage of interest I will receive annually? For example I see two different options, both 06/2023 maturity with one having 2 and the other 8 for "coupon" column. What is the difference and why would one choose 2 over 8?

I searched Reddit and especially this Subreddit but didn't find many resources to read up on Fixed Income and GIC and how to balance them with stocks and other risky investments, so any reference or information is highly appreciated. Thanks