Even a slightly lower cost of capital is important for a business that carries a lot of debt.

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Comparing terms is often a complicated analysis and the practical cost-of-capital of a given debt term sheet is sometimes hard to calculate.

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Something has to give as the debt market tightens, Kravis added, and as the cost of capital goes up, multiples come down.

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And if banks are already paying over the odds for capital and debt, which they are, that must push up the cost and limit the availability of finance for households and businesses.

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If a buyback raises the debt-to-equity ratio, it can lower the firm's overall cost of capital (because in most countries interest payments, unlike dividends, are tax deductible).

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