Financial openness, financial frictions and optimal monetary policy

Increasing financial integration challenges the optimality of inward-looking strategies for optimal monetary policy. Those issues are analyzed in an open economy where foreign net lending, and the current account, are determined by a collateral constraint. Durables represent collateral. The current account features persistent imbalances, but can deliver a long run stationary equilibrium. The comparison between floating and managed exchange rate regimes shows that the impossible trinity is reversed: higher financial integration increases the persistence and volatility of the current account and calls for exchange rate stabilization. In this context, the Ramsey plan too prescribes stabilization of the exchange rate, alongside with domestic inflation.     

人民币汇率对FDI影响的实证分析

文章通过对汇率与FD I相关理论的述评和构建计量模型后认为:人民币汇率长期波动的降低和人民币贬值都能促进FD I的流入,而短期波动对FD I的影响并不显著。在2005年7月我国实行更有弹性的汇率机制后,保持汇率的长期稳定对促进外资流入具有重大的意义,同时可以在短期内调整汇率波动的自由度,加大宏观调控的政策空间。由于GDP增长比汇率变化对FD I的影响更为显著,因此名义汇率的升值并不会使我国今后的FD I流入明显下降。     

The impact of deviation from relative purchasing power parity equilibrium on U.S. foreign direct investment

Analyzing inbound and outbound foreign direct investment (FDI) between the U.S. and seven developed countries over the period from 1994 to 2004, this study provides strong evidence for a positive relationship between aggregate FDI flows and a strengthening of a home currency. Further, taking exchange rate disequilibrium into account, we find that an increase in U.S. inbound FDI is related to a strengthening of an undervalued and overvalued U.S. dollar, while an increase in U.S. outbound FDI (foreign inbound FDI) is mainly related to a strengthening of an overvalued foreign currency. Disaggregate FDI flow data show that these findings hold mainly for the manufacturing (food and machinery) and the wholesale industry. We argue that our findings may provide evidence for a co-existence of the wealth-effect hypothesis and a more profit and production oriented hypothesis, once the U.S. dollar is undervalued. Additionally, the results support the argument that the profit and production oriented hypothesis dominates the wealth effect in developed countries, especially in the manufacturing and wholesale industry. Moreover, the results support the view that foreign investors are interested in how overvalued or undervalued a currency is, rather than being interested only in the recent direction of change in the exchange rate. Finally, all findings are robust with respect to several estimation procedures.     

The effect of episodes of large capital inflows on domestic credit

This paper analyses the effect of capital inflow surges on the evolution of domestic credit. Using a panel of developed and emerging economies from 1970 to 2007, it is shown that in the two years following the beginning of a capital inflow surge the credit-to-GDP ratio increases by about 2 percentage points. The effect is reversed in the medium-term with the credit-to-GDP ratio decreased by almost 4 percentage points seven years after the initial surge. The paper also finds that the effect is different depending on the type of flows characterising the episode (debt vs. portfolio equity vs. FDI), with large capital inflows that are debt-driven having the largest effect. The results of the paper also suggest that the short-term effect of capital inflow surges on domestic credit depends on countries’ macroeconomic policy stances. In particular, it is found that this effect is lower in countries with higher real exchange rate flexibility and fiscal policy counter-cyclicality.     

Impact of an unexplained component of real exchange rate volatility on FDI: Evidence from transition countries

The aim of this paper is to examine the impact of an unexplained component of real exchange rate volatility on FDI in transition economies. We make an attempt to overcome some problems associated with previous studies; the aggregation problem, inadequate measures of volatility, short-run focus and the endogeneity problem. Using a GARCH specification, we focus on long-run volatility, while we control for the endogeneity problem by applying SYS-GMM estimation. The obtained results show that the impact of the unexplained component of real exchange rate volatility on FDI differs among economic activities since 2000. As part of the re-estimation exercise, we use two alternative measures of volatility to avoid arbitrariness. The obtained results are to a large extent in accordance with the first one.     

外商直接投资与货币政策对中国出口的影响

利用2005年1月至2010年12月的数据,比较货币政策与资本流入两种因素对中国出口贸易的影响。实证结果表明,中国出口额与利率、汇率、信贷量、FDI存在长期协整关系,信贷量每增加1%,出口额增加0.84%。但FDI对出口贸易的长短期影响不一致。而且经检验发现,利率变动和汇率变动并不是出口变动的Granger原因。所以,中国应完善基础设施建设,缩短FDI发挥创造效应的时间,并综合利用信贷政策、利率政策、汇率政策等多种政策来调整贸易收支。     

Threshold effects of terms of trade on Latin American growth

This paper investigates nonlinear relationships between terms of trade volatility (totvol) and economic growth in 14 Latin American economies from 1997 to 2014. In the 2000s, Latin American countries experienced accelerated economic growth often attributed to commodity price booms. We split the sample into two regimes based on totvol thresholds determined by bootstrap techniques. Fixed effects, instrumental variable and dynamic panel regressions address endogeneity in trade growth, subject to traditional economic channels such as domestic investment, population growth, exchange rate, government size, and institutions. We find statistically significant thresholds and stronger trade-growth links during the 2000s commodity boom and in larger economies.     

汇率波动对外商直接投资的影响 ——基于知识资本模型从产业角度的实证检验

本文运用知识资本模型分别从国别和产业的角度对汇率波动与国际直接投资(FDI)进行实证检验。该模型考虑到资源禀赋对FDI的影响,并将FDI细分为垂直型和水平型;同时,为了使计量更加精确,本文还将模型中汇率的波动分解为一价定律失效导致的波动和不可解释的原因导致的波动;最后,本文还检验了美元盯住制对FDI的影响。结果发现,东道国货币贬值是否有利于吸引FDI取决于该国FDI是以水平型还是垂直型为主,同时,美元盯住制对FDI没有促进作用。     

Panel cointegration,quantile regressions,asymmetric adjustments and crises: The case of EU current accounts

This paper investigates the relationships between the current account and several fundamentals, including the real exchange rate, government consumption, investment, openness, terms of trade and real income in the EU28 group of countries. A main feature of the study is that we also assess the relationships for two subgroups, the EU15 + Cyprus and Malta, and the CEECs. Using data spanning the period between 1995q1 and 2019q2, we identify similarities and differences between the responses in these two subgroups, which are obscured when an aggregate study of the EU28 is conducted, rather than sub-groups. Our results suggest that, in assessing the current account for economic blocs, an a priori assumption of similar relationships for member countries may be misplaced.     

Exchange rate misalignments,capital flows and volatility

This study investigates the effect of three dimensions of exchange rate misalignments—(i) distance (absolute misalignments), (ii) direction (overvaluation or undervaluation), and (iii) degree (small or large misalignments)—on the overall as well as short-cycle exchange rate volatility. Using data from 1988 to 2014, we find that relative PPP-based exchange rate misalignments increase exchange rate volatility. For developed and developing countries, this increase in volatility is driven mainly by large undervalued misalignments of the U.S. dollar. This finding might be linked to interventions targeting the loss in domestic producers’ competitiveness in global markets. Interestingly, in the case of developed countries, we find this adverse effect on exchange rate volatility also for small absolute misalignments; exchange rate movements close to equilibrium may be associated with ambiguity with respect to future movements in developed countries, which can result in higher exchange rate volatility. Further, the results suggest that, when the dollar is highly undervalued, capital flows have a stabilizing effect on exchange rate volatility in developed countries but a destabilizing effect in developing countries. The finding is consistent with investors’ strategy of taking exchange rate overvaluation and undervaluation into account when engaging in cross-border investments.     

The relation between the equity risk premium and the bond maturity premium in the UK: 1900–2006

Using a rich data set for the UK for over a century, we find that the relation between the equity risk premium and the government bond maturity premium is nonlinear and subject to stochastic regime switching. We identify a regime in which both premia are jointly characterized by low volatility and another regime in which both premia are characterized by high volatility. The occurrence of the high volatility regime chronologically coincides with major changes in the pound exchange rate. The low volatility regime has a higher probability of turning up over two consecutive years than the high volatility regime, but it is not perceived by investors to be an absorbing regime. The lagged maturity premium is a strong predictor of the equity risk premium only in the regime of low volatility. In addition, the lagged equity premium is a predictor of the maturity premium also in the low volatility regime. This result on regime-dependent bidirectional predictability is robust to alternative definitions of the equity premium, and to the inclusion of real interest rate and real growth effects.

The impact of the early withdrawal option on time deposit pricing

Retail certificates of deposit contain an early withdrawal option allowing investors (depositors) to sell them back to banks in exchange for their face value less a prespecified withdrawal penalty. The Withdrawal Option Pricing Hypothesis posits that this put option is priced by banks and investors, suggesting that, ceteris paribus, CD yields will be lower than Treasury yields and that CD-Treasury yield spreads vary over time in ways predicted by option pricing theory. We show that yield spreads between five-year retail CDs of at least $90,000 and comparable maturity Treasuries are generally negative, despite reasons why CDs should provide higher yields than Treasuries. We also show that changes in the spread are negatively related to expected interest-rate levels (represented by the slope of the yield curve), negatively related to levels of interest rates (represented by the short-term riskless rate), and negatively related to expectations of interest-rate volatility (represented by implied volatility from exchange traded options).     

Exchange market pressure on the pound–dollar exchange rate: 1925–1931

This is a study of exchange market pressure against the pound sterling during the inter-war period. The main findings are that (a) the behavior of U.K. fundamentals relative to those of the U.S.A. helps to explain exchange market pressure against the pound; (b) during the run-up to devaluation in September 1931 the monetary authorities in the U.K. were acting to reduce domestic credit; but (c) additional pressure was brought against the pound from speculative sources. These findings relate to current thinking on the choice of exchange rate regime as even well-behaved fundamentals may not be sufficient to sustain a currency on its peg.     

International business cycles and risk sharing with uncertainty shocks and recursive preferences

This paper analyzes the effects of output volatility shocks on the dynamics of consumption, trade flows and the real exchange rate, in a two-country, two-good world with consumption home bias, recursive preferences, and complete financial markets. When the risk aversion coefficient exceeds the inverse of the intertemporal substitution elasticity, then an exogenous rise in a country׳s output volatility triggers a wealth transfer to that country, to compensate for the greater riskiness of the country׳s output stream. This risk sharing transfer raises the country׳s consumption, lowers its trade balance and appreciates its real exchange rate. In the recursive preferences framework here, volatility shocks account for a non-negligible share of the fluctuations of net exports, net foreign assets and the real exchange rate. These shocks help to explain the high empirical volatility of the real exchange rate and the disconnect between relative consumption and the real exchange rate.     

Higher moment exchange rate exposure of S&P500 firms

We examine the impact of higher order moments of changes in the exchange rate on stock returns of U.S. large-cap companies in the S&P500. We find a robust negative effect of exchange rate volatility on S&P500 company returns. The consumer discretionary and the consumer staples sectors have significant negative exposure to exchange rate volatility suggesting that exchange rate volatility affects stock returns through the channel of international operations. In terms of industries, the household products and personal products industries have significant negative exposure as well. The impact in the financial sector suggests that derivatives and hedging activity can mitigate exposure to exchange rate volatility. We find weak evidence that exchange rate skewness has an effect on S&P500 stock returns, but, find evidence that exchange rate kurtosis affects returns of companies that are more exposed to exchange rate volatility.     

Spillovers between sovereign CDS and exchange rate markets: The role of market fear

As important variables in financial market, sovereign credit default swaps (CDS) and exchange rate have correlations and spillovers. And the volatility spillovers between the two markets become further complicated with the effect of market fear caused by extreme events such as global pandemic. This paper attempts to explore the complex interactions within the “sovereign CDS-exchange rate” system by adopting the forecast error variance decomposition method. The results show that there is a relatively close linkage between the two markets and the total spillover index of the system is dynamic. For most of the past, the exchange rate has a higher spillover effect on the sovereign CDS than vice versa. Moreover, after the market fear variables are introduced, the “sovereign CDS-exchange rate” system and market fear variables present bidirectional spillovers. The results of the study have particular significance for maintaining the financial stability and preventing risk contagion between markets.     

Capital inflows,exchange market pressure,and credit growth in four transition economies with fixed exchange rates

With the transition from planned economic systems to membership in the European Union, capital inflows and domestic credit have expanded tremendously in Central and Eastern Europe. Four of these countries—Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Bulgaria—maintain fixed exchange-rate regimes, which may face pressure because of rapid credit growth or during a slowdown. This study uses a Vector Autoregressive (VAR) approach to assess the contribution of capital inflows to exchange market pressure in these four countries, as well as to the growth of domestic credit. Both FDI and non-FDI flows are shown to feed credit growth in Bulgaria, but not the Baltics. Relatively volatile flows, particularly non-FDI inflows, reduce EMP in three of the four countries.     

Current account and credit growth: The role of household credit and financial depth

Understanding the impact of financial variables on the current account balance is one of the priorities of academic literature and policymakers. Evidence from a broad panel of advanced and emerging countries shows that an increase in credit growth is associated with a significant deterioration in the current account balance. When we examine the roles of the components of credit, we find that an increase in household credit causes a significant decline in the current account balance, whereas an increase in business loans has no significant effect. Therefore, our findings indicate that the significant negative impact of credit growth on the current account balance is driven by household credit. Furthermore, we show that total and household credit growth rates have a stronger negative effect on the current account balance for lower levels of financial depth. Our results suggest that targeted policy measures that curb household credit growth might be more effective to reduce external imbalances particularly at the early stages of financial deepening.     

Spillover effects in oil-related CDS markets during and after the sub-prime crisis

This paper investigates the return and volatility spillover effects across oil-related credit default swaps (CDSs), the oil market, and financial market risks for the US during and after the subprime crises. The empirical analysis is based on monthly return and realized volatility data from February 2004 to April 2020. We estimate both static and dynamic generalized dynamic spillover measures based on vector autoregressive (VAR) models. Our full sample empirical findings show that the oil market is the primary source of risk transmission for all the oil-related credit default swaps, while the bond market is the highest source of risk transmission to the stock market and vice versa. We also provide evidence that the regulated monopoly US utility sector has the least role in volatility transmission. Furthermore, the bailout program conducted by the US Treasury and Federal Reserve helped stabilize the US financial market through the purchase of toxic assets after the subprime financial crisis. We find strong evidence that the federal funds rate hike cycles lessen total risk transmission throughout the US bond market. Finally, our findings assert that oil price shocks have a significant effect on the oil-related CDSs in some sub-periods via the demand and supply transmission channels.     

Brexit and FDI

• The potential for a departure from the EU to undermine the UK's attractiveness as a location for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is often cited as one of the key risks were the UK to leave the EU. In weighing up the threat to FDI posed by ‘Brexit’ we assess the net gain from inward investment and the role played by EU membership in attracting FDI.
• In theory, FDI benefits the economy via lower interest rates, higher wages for workers and ‘spillover’ benefits boosting economy‐wide productivity. But the evidence for these benefits is ambiguous. And FDI has potential drawbacks. These include an adverse effect on the tradeable sector, reflected in a wider current account deficit, the potential to ‘crowd out’ investment by domestic firms and the fiscal cost of subsidies paid to inward investors.
• That almost half of FDI in the UK comes from other EU countries suggests that EU membership is not the only driver of foreign investment in the UK. Other factors include the UK's business friendly environment, as reflected in global competitiveness surveys, and a relatively deregulated labour market. Of perhaps most importance is the lure provided by the UK's large domestic economy. 80% of FDI in the UK is in sectors where sales to the EU account for less than 10% of total demand.
• However, FDI in manufacturing does look vulnerable to Brexit, given the importance of the EU market. Granted, manufacturing accounts for a modest share of UK FDI. But to the extent that FDI boosts productivity, a loss of inward investment in this sector is likely to come at a disproportionate cost.
• Our modelling suggests that in a worst case Brexit scenario, the stock of FDI could ultimately be 7% lower relative to the UK remaining in the EU, potentially knocking around ½% off the level of GDP.