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Introduction
The market for foreign exchange involves the purchase and sale of national
currencies. A foreign exchange market exists because economies employ national
currencies. If the world economy used a single currency there would be no need for
foreign exchange markets. In Europe 11 economies have chosen to trade their
individual currencies for a common currency. But the euro will still trade against
other world currencies. For now, the foreign exchange market is a fact of life.
The foreign exchange market is extremely active. It is primarily an over
the counter market, the exchanges trade futures and option (more below) but most
transactions are OTC .It is difficult to assess the actual size of the foreign exchange
market because it is traded in many markets. For the US the Fed has estimated
turnover (in traditional products) in 1998to be $351 billion per day, after adjusting
for double counting. This is a 43% increase over1995, and about 60 times the
turnover in 1977. The Bank of International Settlements did survey currency
exchanges in 26 major centers and this provides some evidence. In figure 1we
present some evidence of the daily trading volume in the major cities. This shows
the size and growth of the market. Daily trading volumes on the foreign exchange
market often exceed $1 trillion1which is much larger than volumes on the New
York Stock Exchange (the total volume of trade on Black Monday in 1987 was
$21 billion). The annual volume off foreign exchange trading is some 60 times
larger than annual world trade ($5.2 trillion), and even 10-12 times larger than
world GNP (about $25-30 trillion in 1995). You can also verify from figure 1 that
the UK still accounts for the largest share of actual trades, more than 31%.
2. Objectives
The objectives of this chapter are:
3. Methodology
Data collection:- (Secondary data)
In data collection method we shall collect the secondary data from the following
sources.
Books
Magazine
Internet
STATICAL TOOLS
MS EXCEL
MS Word.
MS Power point
Meaning
Foreign exchange market refers to the buying and selling of one national
currency for another I.e. buying foreign currencies with domestic currencies and
selling foreign currencies foe domestic currencies
Import-Export traders convert their foreign earnings into home currencies or home
currencies into foreign currencies to meet their obligations abroad.
Institutions like the Treasury. Central Bank , foreign exchange bank etc, involved
in the purchase and sale of foreign exchange currencies constitute the foreign
exchange market
1. clearing function
2.credit function
3.Hedging function
1. Clearing function
The is the primary function of the foreign exchange market. The foreign
exchange market helps to transfer the purchasing power between countries. This
transfer is done by converting domestic currency into foreign currencies and viceversa. Such a clearing mechanism helps to carry out international payments and
transactions.
Various credit instruments like foreign exchange bills and telegraphic transfer are
used for the purpose of affecting the transfer of purchasing power. The telegraphic
transfer is the quickest method and hence it is more popular.
The foreign bill of exchange is a draft or a commercial paper. The mechanism of
payment is similar to the mechanism of domestic payments through inter-bank
transactions.
The telegraphic transfer is an order by one bank in a country to its correspondent
in another country to pay the exporter out of rues foreign exchange account. The
foreign exchange market enables a complex pattern of multi-lateral payments.
2. Credit function
The foreign exchange market provides national and International credit to
promote foreign trade. International payments may be delayed as exporters and
importers may not be able to fulfill their obligations immediately. They may delay
payment for 60 or 90 days.in such cases, the foreign exchange market may provide
credit by discounting foreign exchange bills.
For e.g is bank Mr. X can get his bill discounted with a foreign exchange bank in
New York and this bank will transfer the bill to its correspondent in India for
collection of money from Mr. Y after the stipulated time.
3. Hedging Function
Hedging means covering foreign exchange risks arising out of fluctuations
in exchange rates. An importer who has to make payments to a foreign country
may lose if he expects the price to rise in future. To cover the risk, he may deposit
his own funds in the foreign country or buy forward the foreign exchange.
An exporter may lose if
he exports. To cover the risk, he may burrito from abroad at the present rate of
exchange or sells forward his expected foreign exchange.
Hedging can be done either by means of a spot market or a forward market
involving a forward contract.
The first exchange rate system popularly called Gold standard prevailed
during 1879-1934 with the exception of World war years, Under the Gold standard
currencies of different countries were tied to gold E.g. the value of currency of
each country was fixed in terms of a certain quantity of gold. Thus the exchange
rate between different countries got automatically fixed. The gold standard
represented the fixed exchange rate system.
From the end of world war ll to 1971, another Fixed Exchange Rate System
known as the Bretton Woods System prevailed. Under this , the U.S. dollar was
tied to certain quantity of gold and the currencies of other countries were tied to
dollar or in some countries , directly to gold. Due to the persistent deficit in the
balance of payments in the US in 1971, the Bretton Woods system also broke
down.
Since then, the Flexible or the Floating Exchange rate system has been existing
since the Govt. or Central Bank of many countries intervenes to keep the
international value of their currencies (exchange rate) within certain limits, the
exchange rate system has not been purely flexible even after 1971. Hence it been
called Managed Float System.
Central Banks has to regularly intervene in the foreign exchange market. Fixed
exchange rate system was adopted by countries till 1971 where the exchange rate
was maintained within specific limits of the par values of the currencies.
of the same. Flexible exchange rate was adopted since 1973 where the exchange
rates were fixed by market forces of demand and supply.
achieved through
interventions
by central bank whenever exchange rate varies from a stated % from fixed
rate i.e. Kuwaiti Dinar
over-the-counter
(OTC)market; that is, trading does not take place in a central marketplace where
buyers and sellers congregate. Rather, the foreign exchange market is a worldwide
linkage of bank currency traders, nonbank dealers, and FX brokers who assist in
trades connected to one another via a network of telephones, telex machines,
computer terminals, and automated dealing systems. Reuters and EBS are the
largest vendors of quote screen monitors used in trading currencies. The
communications system of the foreign ex-change market is second to none,
including industry, governments, and the military and national security and
intelligence operations. Twenty-four-hour-a-day currency trading follows the sun
around the globe. Three major market segments can be identified: Australasia,
Europe, and North America. Australasia includes the trading centers of Sydney,
Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Bahrain; Europe includes Zurich, Frankfurt,
Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, and London; and North America includes New York,
Montreal, Toronto, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Most trading rooms
operate over a 9- to 12-hour working day,
A. Exchange Rates
Market- clearing prices that equilibrate the quantities supplied
and demanded of foreign currency
B. How Americans Purchase German Goods
1. Foreign Currency Demand-derived from the demand for
foreign countrys goods, services, and financial assets e.g. The
demand for German goods by Americans
2. Foreign Currency Supply:
A. derived from the foreign countrys demand for
local goods.
b. They must convert their currency to purchase. e.g. German
demand for US goods means Germans convert DM to US $ in
order to buy.
3. Equilibrium Exchange Rate:
occurs when the quantity supplied equals the quantity demanded
of a foreign currency at a specific local price.
Features
Foreign exchange rates describe the amount of another currency that one
unit of a certain currency can buy. Because of their association with specific
nations, foreign exchange rates gauge economic and political sentiment. Low
exchange rates translate into weak demand for a currency, as foreign investors
liquidate that country’s stocks, bonds and real estate. At that point,
foreigners might fear recession, or politics that are hostile to foreign investment.
For example, high tax rates on foreign profits can cause foreigners to withdraw
from a particular country.
Conversely, high exchange rates define strong economies and effective political
regimes. Investors are then encouraged to trade for that currency and to purchase
its home nation& rsquo;s assets. The increased demand for the currency supports
elevated exchange rates.
Considerations
Government officials can manage their home economies through foreign exchange
transactions. Low exchange rates for the domestic currency improve the export
economy, because these goods become more affordable to foreign buyers.
However, domestic consumers prefer higher exchange rates, which grant them
more purchasing power for imported goods.
Government leaders use foreign exchange reserves to influence currency
exchange rates. Nations can buy large amounts of foreign exchange reserves to
devalue the home currency. China owned $900 billion worth of U.S. treasuries as
of April 2010, the U.S. Treasury reported. These holdings lower exchange rates for
the Chinese Yuan and support China’s export economy.
Warning
Foreign exchange markets do introduce distinct risks of financial losses and
contagion. Institutions that hold a particular currency lose purchasing power when
its exchange rates deteriorate. However, as a home currency strengthens,
multinational corporations suffer sales declines because their wares become more
expensive overseas.
"Contagion" refers to the process of financial distress in one region growing into a
global crisis. For example, Mexico might default on its sovereign debt, which
causes the peso to collapse. From there, foreign businesspeople with exposure to
Mexico might be forced to sell off all assets to raise cash. The selling compounds,
and it causes markets to crash globally.
Strategy
Foreign exchange markets offer currency derivatives to hedge against risks.
Currency derivatives, such as futures, forwards and options establish
predetermined exchange rates over set periods of time. Futures and options trade
on major exchanges, such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Forwards are
private agreements between two parties to negotiate exchange rates at later points
in time.