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International Financial Management 11th Edition

by Jeff Madura

Relevance of Exchange Rate Risk

 Exchange rates are very volatile.

 The dollar value of an MNC’s future payables or receivables in a foreign currency can change substantially in response to exchange rate movements.

Relevance of Exchange Rate Risk

1. Investor Hedge Argument: exchange rate risk is irrelevant because investors can hedge exchange rate risk on their own.

2. Currency Diversification Argument: if U.S.-based MNC is well diversified across numerous currencies, its value will not be affected by exchange rate risk

3. Stakeholder Diversification Argument: if stakeholders are well diversified, they will be somewhat insulated against losses due to MNC exchange rate risk.

Response from MNCs

Many MNCs attempt to stabilize their earnings with hedging strategies because they believe exchange rate risk is relevant.

Because we manufacture and sell products in a number of countries throughout the world, we are expossed to the impact on revenues and expenses of movements in currency exchange rates.

—Proctor & Gamble Co.

Increased volatility in foreign exchange rates … may have an adverse impact on our business results and financial condition.

—PepsiCo

Forms of Exchange Rate Exposure

1. Transaction exposure

2. Economic exposure

3. Translation exposure

Transaction Exposure

 Definition: sensitivity of the firm’s contractual transactions in foreign currencies to exchange rate movements.

 To assess transaction exposure, the MNC must: Estimate net cash flows in each currency (See Exhibits

10.2 & 10.3)

 Measure potential impact of the currency exposure

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yor currency xin changes percentage ofdeviation standard

yor currency xin valueportfolio of proportion

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CORR

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Exhibit 10.2 Consolidated Net Cash Flow Assessment of Miami Co.

Exposure of an MNC’s Portfolio

 Measurement of currency volatility The standard deviation statistic measures the degree of movement for each currency. In any given period, some currencies clearly fluctuate much more than others.

 Currency volatility over time The volatility of a currency may not remain consistent from one time period to another. An MNC can identify currencies whose values are most likely to be stable or highly volatile in the future.

 Measurement of currency correlations The correlations coefficients indicate the degree to which two currencies move in relation to each other.

Exposure of an MNC’s Portfolio Affected by:

 Applying currency correlations to net cash flows  If a MNC has positive net cash flows in various currencies

that are highly correlated, it may be exposed to exchange rate risk. However, many MNCs have some negative net cash flow positions in some currencies to complement their positive net cash flows in other currencies.

 Currency correlations over timeBecause currency correlations change over time, an MNC cannot use previous correlations to predict future correlations with perfect accuracy.

Exhibit 10.5 Shift In Currency Volatility During The Financial Crisis

Transaction Exposure Based on Value at Risk (VaR)

 Measures the potential maximum 1-day loss on the value of positions of an MNC that is exposed to exchange rate movements.

 Factors that affect the maximum 1-day loss: Expected percentage change in the currency rate for the

next day

 Confidence level used

 Standard deviation of the daily percentage changes in the currency

Limitations of VaR

1. If the distribution of exchange rate movements is not normal, the estimate of the maximum expected loss is subject to error.

2. The VaR method assumes that the volatility (standard deviation) of exchange rate movements is stable over time. If exchange rate movements are less volatile in the past than in the future, the estimated maximum expected loss derived from the VaR method will be underestimated.

Economic Exposure

 Definition: The sensitivity of the firm’s cash flows to exchange rate movements, sometimes referred to as operating exposure. (Exhibits 10.9 & 10.10)

 Economic exposure arises from: Exposure to local currency appreciation

Appreciation in the firm’s local currency causes a reduction in both cash inflows and outflows. The impact on a firm’s net cash flows will depend on whether the inflow transactions are affected more or less than the outflow transactions.

 Exposure to local currency depreciation

Depreciation of the firm’s local currency causes an increase in both cash inflows and outflows.

Exhibit 10.9 Examples That Subject a Firm to Economic Exposure

Exhibit 10.10 Economic Exposure to Exchange Rate Fluctuations

Exhibit 10.12 Impact of Possible Exchange Rates on Cash Flows of Madison Co. (in Millions)

Translation Exposure

 Definition: The exposure of the MNC’s consolidated financial statements to exchange rate fluctuations.

 Determinants of translation exposure: The proportion of business conducted by foreign

subsidiaries

 The locations of foreign subsidiaries

 The accounting methods used

Accounting Methods

MNC translation exposure is affected by accounting procedures, many of which are based on FASB 52:

1. The functional currency of an entity is the currency of the economic environment in which the entity operates.

2. The current exchange rate as of the reporting date is used to translate the assets and liabilities of a foreign entity from its functional currency into the reporting currency.

Accounting Methods

3. The weighted average exchange rate over the relevant period is used to translate revenue, expenses, and gains and losses of a foreign entity from its functional currency into the reporting currency.

4. Translated income gains or losses due to changes in foreign currency values are not recognized in current net income but are reported as a second component of stockholder’s equity; an exception to this rule is a foreign entity located in a country with high inflation.

5. Realized income gains or losses due to foreign currency transactions are recorded in current net income, although there are some exceptions.

Exposure of an MNC’s Stock Price to Translation Effects

Because an MNC’s translation exposure affects its consolidated earnings, it can affect the MNC’s valuation.

SUMMARY

 MNCs with less risk can obtain funds at lower financing costs. Since they may experience more volatile cash flows because of exchange rate movements, exchange rate risk can affect their financing costs. Thus, MNCs recognize the relevance of exchange rate risk, and may benefit from hedging their exposure.

 Transaction exposure is the exposure of an MNC’s contractual transactions to exchange rate movements. MNCs can measure their transaction exposure by determining their future payables and receivables positions in various currencies, along with the volatility levels and correlations of these currencies. From this information, they can assess how their revenue and costs may change in response to various exchange rate scenarios.

SUMMARY (Cont.)

 Economic exposure is any exposure of an MNC’s cash flows (direct or indirect) to exchange rate movements. MNCs can attempt to measure their economic exposure by determining the extent to which their cash flows will be affected by their exposure to each foreign currency.

 Translation exposure is the exposure of an MNC’s consolidated financial statements to exchange rate movements. To measure translation exposure, MNCs can forecast their earnings in each foreign currency and then determine how their earnings could be affected by the potential exchange rate movements of each currency.