The monetary model strikes back: Evidence from the world

We revisit the dramatic failure of monetary models in explaining exchange rate movements. Using the information content from 98 countries, we find strong evidence for cointegration between nominal exchange rates and monetary fundamentals. We also find fundamentals-based models very successful in beating a random walk in out-of-sample prediction.     

Exchange rate forecasting, order flow and macroeconomic information

This paper adds to the research efforts that aim to bridge the divide between macro and micro approaches to exchange rate economics by examining the linkages between exchange rate movements, order flow and expectations of macroeconomic variables. The basic hypothesis tested is that if order flow reflects heterogeneous expectations about macroeconomic fundamentals, and currency markets learn about the state of the economy gradually, then order flow can have both explanatory and forecasting power for exchange rates. Using one year of high frequency data collected via a live feed from Reuters for three major exchange rates, we find that: i) order flow is intimately related to a broad set of current and expected macroeconomic fundamentals; ii) more importantly, order flow is a powerful predictor of daily movements in exchange rates in an out-of-sample exercise, on the basis of economic value criteria such as Sharpe ratios and performance fees implied by utility calculations.     

Panel analysis of the monetary approach to exchange rates: Evidence from ten new EU members and Turkey

This paper presents empirical evidence which links the exchange rates to monetary variables in the newly entered ten EU members and Turkey. Using the panel version of various cointegration tests, we find a long-run relationship between nominal exchange rate and monetary variables such as monetary differential, output differential, interest rate differential and price differential. In addition, empirical evidence shows that our error-correction framework of the out-of-sample predictability outperforms random walk after two years.     

人民币汇率贬值的机制研究——基于2014年以后走势的理论和实证分析

2014年以来人民币一改以往总体升值的趋势性特征,出现了自2005年汇改后从未出现过的突变反转性持续贬值,这一罕见现象具有重要的典型性学术和现实研究价值,但已有文献对此所进行的分析较为零散初步.本文采用BVAR等方法对该问题进行深入系统的理论分析和实证检验,研究结论表明:2014年以来人民币汇率走势出现了贬值趋势性特征,而不是短暂回调.国际收支的变化和贬值预期的变化是人民币汇率贬值的直接原因,经济基本面因素对人民币汇率的影响经过国际收支和预期的传导来产生作用.人民币兑美元汇率与经济基本面、货币政策、市场预期以及国际收支因素之间存在长期均衡关系.上述结论对于进一步完善人民币汇率理论和丰富汇率管理经验等具有借鉴意义.     

Robustness and exchange rate volatility

This paper studies exchange rate volatility within the context of the monetary model of exchange rates. We assume that agents regard this model as merely a benchmark, or reference model, and attempt to construct forecasts that are robust to model misspecification. We show that revisions of robust forecasts are more volatile than revisions of nonrobust forecasts, and that empirically plausible concerns for model misspecification can explain observed exchange rate volatility. We also briefly discuss the implications of robust forecasts for a number of other exchange rate puzzles.     

Out-of-sample exchange rate predictability with Taylor rule fundamentals

An extensive literature that studied the performance of empirical exchange rate models following Meese and Rogoff's [Meese, R.A., Rogoff, K., 1983a. Empirical Exchange Rate Models of the Seventies: Do They Fit Out of Sample? Journal of International Economics 14, 3-24.] seminal paper has not convincingly found evidence of out-of-sample exchange rate predictability. This paper extends the conventional set of models of exchange rate determination by investigating predictability of models that incorporate Taylor rule fundamentals. We find evidence of short-term predictability for 11 out of 12 currencies vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar over the post-Bretton Woods float, with the strongest evidence coming from specifications that incorporate heterogeneous coefficients and interest rate smoothing. The evidence of predictability is much stronger with Taylor rule models than with conventional interest rate, purchasing power parity, or monetary models.     

Exchange rate forecasting: the errors we’ve really made

We examine the real-time forecasting performance of standard exchange rate models, using dozens of different vintages of data. Favorable evidence of long-horizon exchange rate predictability for the DM and Yen found in Mark (American Economic Review 1995;85:201-218) is present in only a two-year window of data vintages around that originally used. Approximately one-third of the improved forecasting performance over a random walk is eventually undone by data revisions. We also find the models consistently perform better using original release data than fully-revised data, and sometimes forecast better using real-time forecasts of future fundamentals instead of actual future fundamentals, contradicting a cherished presumption dating back to Meese and Rogoff (Journal of International Economics 1983;14:3-24).     

On the unstable relationship between exchange rates and macroeconomic fundamentals

Survey evidence shows that the relationship between the exchange rate and macro fundamentals is perceived to be highly unstable. We argue that this unstable relationship naturally develops when structural parameters in the economy are unknown. We show that the reduced form relationship between exchange rates and fundamentals is then driven not by the structural parameters themselves, but rather by expectations of these parameters. These expectations can vary significantly over time as a result of perfectly rational “scapegoat” effects. These effects can be expected to hold more broadly in macro and finance beyond the application to exchange rates in this paper.     

中国货币政策不确定性和宏观经济新闻的人民币汇率效应

基于2012年4月30日至2018年12月17日的银行间7天逆回购操作利率,本文首次使用波动率回归拟合的方法,从政策利率的角度改进中国货币政策不确定性指数,并进一步研究了在不同程度货币政策不确定性的情况下,人民币兑美元汇率对宏观经济新闻的反应。收集和构建10项宏观经济新闻后,本文发现当市场参与者普遍不能较为准确地预测未来政策变化的情形时,货币政策不确定性上升,在岸、离岸人民币兑美元汇率对宏观经济新闻的反应显著减弱。当货币政策存在较高不确定性时,市场对未来政策判断的分歧加剧,进而人民币汇率对宏观经济新闻的反应不足。在货币政策不确定性较高时,增加央行的汇率沟通,可以发挥其对宏观经济新闻的补充作用,同时增强市场对宏观经济基本面信息的反应。本文不仅丰富了货币政策不确定性的负面影响、经济后果以及宏观经济新闻的人民币汇率效应相关理论研究,而且为未来货币政策制定、调整和实施提供了有价值的依据,为货币当局进行有效外汇市场干预提供了经验参考。     

Monetary policy and exchange rate overshooting: Dornbusch was right after all

Dornbusch's exchange rate overshooting hypothesis is a central building block in international macroeconomics. Yet, empirical studies of monetary policy have typically found exchange rate effects that are inconsistent with overshooting. This puzzling result has been viewed by some researchers as a “stylized fact” to be reckoned with in policy modelling. However, many of these studies, in particular those using vector autoregressive (VARs) approaches, have disregarded the strong contemporaneous interaction between monetary policy and exchange rate movements by placing zero restrictions on them. In contrast, we achieve identification by imposing a long-run neutrality restriction on the real exchange rate, thereby allowing for contemporaneous interaction between the interest rate and the exchange rate. In a study of four open economies, we find that the puzzles disappear. In particular, a contractionary monetary policy shock has a strong effect on the exchange rate, which appreciates on impact. The maximum effect occurs within 1-2 quarters, and the exchange rate thereafter gradually depreciates to baseline, consistent with the Dornbusch overshooting hypothesis and with few exceptions consistent with uncovered interest parity (UIP).     

Fluctuations in the foreign exchange market: How important are monetary policy shocks?

We study the effects of U.S. monetary policy shocks on the bilateral exchange rate between the U.S. and each of the G7 countries. We also estimate deviations from uncovered interest rate parity conditional on these shocks. The analysis is based on a structural vector autoregression in which monetary policy shocks are identified through the conditional heteroscedasticity of the structural disturbances. Unlike earlier work in this area, our empirical methodology avoids making arbitrary assumptions about the relevant policy indicator or transmission mechanism in order to achieve identification. At the same time, it allows us to assess the implications of imposing invalid identifying restrictions. Our results indicate that the nominal exchange rate exhibits delayed overshooting in response to a monetary expansion, depreciating for roughly ten months before starting to appreciate. The shock also leads to large and persistent departures from uncovered interest rate parity. Variance-decomposition results indicate that monetary policy shocks account for a non-trivial proportion of exchange rate fluctuations.     

A macroeconomic model of international price discrimination

This paper builds a baseline two-country model of real and monetary transmission in the presence of optimal international price discrimination by firms. Distributing traded goods to consumers requires nontradables, making the price elasticity of demand country-specific and a function of the exchange rate. Profit-maximizing monopolistic firms drive a wedge between prices across countries, optimally dampening the response of import and consumer prices to exchange-rate movements. We derive general equilibrium expressions for the pass-through into import and consumer prices, tracing the differential impact of real and monetary shocks on marginal cost and markup fluctuations through the exchange rate.     

The effects of exchange rate fluctuations on exports: A sectoral analysis for Turkey

This paper examines the effects of exchange rate fluctuations on disaggregated data comprising 21 exporting sectors (BEC classification) in Turkey. Building on a theoretical model that decomposes movements in the exchange rate into anticipated and unanticipated components, the empirical investigation traces the effects through demand and supply channels. Anticipated exchange rate appreciation, in line with movements in underlying fundamentals, has significant adverse effects, contracting export growth across many sectors. Random fluctuations in the exchange rate, deviations around steady-state equilibrium, have asymmetric effects on sectoral export growth. The evidence indicates increased contraction of export demand to currency appreciation over time. In contrast, the effect of depreciation in stimulating export growth has lost momentum over time. While exchange rate fluctuations had a positive net effect on export growth before 2003, the net effect is negative for the post-2002 period. The implications are anticipated movement in the exchange rate guides export plans, signaling the importance of managing fundamentals to anchor rational forecasts. Moreover, less variability of the exchange rate is likely to improve sectoral export growth in Turkey over time.     

The out-of-sample success of term structure models as exchange rate predictors: a step beyond

A large literature suggests that standard exchange rate models cannot outperform a random walk forecast and that the forward rate is not an optimal predictor of the spot rate. However, there is evidence that the term structure of forward premia contains valuable information for forecasting future spot exchange rates and that exchange rate dynamics display nonlinearities. This paper proposes a term-structure forecasting model of exchange rates based on a regime-switching vector equilibrium correction model which is novel in this context. Our model significantly outperforms both a random walk and, to a lesser extent, a linear term-structure vector equilibrium correction model for four major dollar rates across a range of horizons.     

Useful Properties of Exchange Rate Forecasts for Risk Management and Derivative Pricing

We examine three useful properties of the yen/dollar exchange‐rate forecasts that are published in January and July in the Wall Street Journal. Those properties are the level of explanatory power, whether some forecasters are consistently better than others, and whether the dispersion of forecasts can predict the volatility of the exchange rates. The results show that the relative accuracy of the individual forecasts has not been random each period, and the evidence suggests that some forecasters are consistently better than others. The forecasts from the best forecasters explain about half of the variability in the semiannual exchange‐rate series. Finally, the dispersion of all the forecasts each period, as measured by the standard deviation, has predictive power with respect to the daily volatility of the forecasts for the three months following the survey. This final property has implications for the pricing and use of currency options. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The role of country-specific fundamentals in sovereign CDS spreads: Eastern European experiences

We investigate the determinants of sovereign CDS spreads on a sample of Eastern European data. A dynamic hierarchical factor model is used to aggregate information in indicators of economic fundamentals. CDS spreads are regressed on forecasts of factors. We find that domestic fundamentals explain more of CDS spread variance than global factors, largely due to their ability to explain differences in sovereign risk across countries. The effects on CDS spreads are found to be time-varying. In terms of economic significance, the factor of institutional-political strength stands out. We apply the model to study CDS spreads of Poland, Russia and Turkey.     

日德本币升值下的政策得失及对我国的启示

在本币升值背景下,日本与德国采取了不同的应对政策。德国首先着眼于国内宏观经济的稳定,放开汇率的波动,从而更好地保持了国民经济的稳定与增长;而日本试图阻止和缓解日元升值压力,其结果却是日元持续急剧升值,并造成了日本高通货膨胀和泡沫经济。综观日本、德国汇率波动的历史可以得到以下启示：人民币汇率升值是必然趋势;坚持货币政策的独立性十分重要;在坚持货币政策的独立性的同时,实现缓慢渐进式汇率改革;区域货币合作有利于区域内强国减少投机资本冲击,减少汇率升值对贸易品部门的负面影响;加快经济发展战略的转型,促使内外经济均衡发展。     

Incomplete pass-through and the welfare effects of exchange rate variability

This paper considers the implications of incomplete exchange rate pass-through for optimal monetary and exchange rate policy. A two-country model is presented, which allows an explicit derivation of welfare functions in terms of a weighted sum of the second moments of producer prices and the nominal exchange rate. From a single country perspective, the optimal exchange rate variance depends on the degree of pass-through, the size and openness of the economy, the elasticity of labour supply and the volatility of foreign producer prices. Welfare may be decreasing or increasing in the volatility of the exchange rate.     

A new world order: explaining the international diffusion of the gold standard, 1870-1913

The gold standard gradually became an international monetary regime after 1870. Similarly, some nations in the European Union are waiting to adopt the euro while others have joined immediately. What explains the timing of exchange rate regime adoption? To find out, the international diffusion of the gold standard is analyzed. Duration analysis shows that network externalities operating through trade channels, the desire to decrease borrowing costs on international capital markets, and the level of development matter. Some evidence shows that the level of exchange rate volatility or inflationist agricultural interests did not matter for the timing of adoption.     

Monetary policy and welfare in a small open economy

This paper analyzes optimal monetary policy in a small open economy featuring monopolistic competition and nominal rigidities. It shows that the utility-based loss function for this economy can be written as a quadratic expression of domestic inflation, output gap and real exchange rate. The presence of an internal monopolistic distortion and a terms of trade externality drives optimal policy away from domestic inflation targeting and affects the optimal level of exchange rate volatility. When domestic and foreign goods are close substitutes for each other, the optimal policy rule implies lower real exchange rate volatility than a domestic inflation targeting regime. The reverse is true when the elasticity of substitution between goods is low.