Exchange Rates And Prices

This book provides a systematic treatment of the interaction between national price levels and exchange rates, and the formation of expectation regarding exchange rates on trade flows. The thrust is empirical and the study is made up of five self-contained chapters with a common theme, viz., the behaviour of prices and quantities in international goods and financial markets. The major motivation is to distill the key issues addressed in the extremely large literature and present these issues in a succinct analytical manner.

This is a reprint of a previously published book. It consists of a series of papers by experts in the field on how the exchange rate volatility of the 1980s affected the financial policies of international firms.

Discusses economic issues associated with exchange rates, commodity prices, the economic size of countries and alternatives to PPP exchange rates.

Originally published in 1996. This study looks at the impact of exchange rate fluctuation on the pricing practices of foreign industries that import into the United States market. It presents several studies of the pass-through behaviour of over 100 disaggregated commodity groups with bi-lateral exchange rates. The book presents analysis of specific competitors and their individual pricing responses to exchange rate changes, adding significantly to pricing theory as well as being useful for marketers in predicting business responses.

As managers expand their international business operations, they are confronted by the puzzling and vexing world of foreign exchange (FX) rates. This text is designed as a resource that can help managers quickly understand and navigate the FX market. The text may be used as an introductory module in a course in international finance, whether the course is oriented to international markets, international investments, or international corporate finance. The primary intended audience is an applied MBA course aimed at executives, managers, and would-be managers. After an introduction to foreign exchange (FX) rates, the text covers the important topic FX rate valuation. It is important for managers to understand when an FX rate is incorrectly valued, as this situation may have a bearing on strategic decisions to operate or invest overseas. The text also covers the mechanics of forward FX contracts, and their use in managing the risk of future foreign currency cash flows. In the case study included in the text, the case company is faced with FX exposure in the revenues of a proposed new foreign customer. The decision-maker applies the text material to evaluate whether the FX rate is over-, under-, or correctly valued. The final decision is whether to expand sales to the foreign market and whether to hedge the FX risk.

These seventeen essays provide an accessible and thorough reference for understanding the role of exchange rates in the international monetary system since 1973, when the rates were allowed to float. The essays analyze such issues as exchange rate movements, exchange risk premia, investor expectations of exchange rates and behavior of exchange rates in different systems. Frankel's sound empirical treatment of exchange rate questions shows that it is possible to produce work that is interesting from a purely intellectual viewpoint while contributing to practical knowledge of the real world of international economics and finance.The essays have been organized in a way that provides an introduction to the field of empirical international finance. Part I documents the steady reduction in barriers to international capital movement and leads logically to part II, which explains how exchange rates are determined. Both monetary and portfolio-based models are surveyed in part II, providing a clear transition to the topic of part III; the possible existence of an exchange risk premium. Part IV applies the tools discussed in earlier sections to explore various policy questions related to exchange rate expectations such as whether foreign exchange intervention matters and whether the European monetary system had become credible by 1991. Each part begins with a detailed introduction explaining not only the central issues of that section but also suggesting connections with other essays in the book.Jeffrey A. Frankel is Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley.