A) This chapter has three main objectives. The first objective is to explain how the foreign
exchange market works. The second objective is to examine the forces that determine exchange
rates and to discuss the degree to which it is possible to predict exchange rate movements. The
third objective is to map the implications for international business of exchange rate movements
and the foreign exchange market.
B) The foreign exchange market is a market for converting the currency of one country into that
of another country.
C) The exchange rate is the rate at which one currency is converted into another.
D) Dealing in multiple currencies is a requirement of doing business internationally. Therefore, it
is important to understand the risks involved and how varying exchange rates affect the
attractiveness of different investments and deals over time. Firms can use the foreign exchange
market to hedge the risk of adverse exchange rate changes, but doing so can prevent firms from
benefiting from favorable changes.
THE FUNCTIONS OF THE FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET
A) The foreign exchange market serves two main functions. The first is to convert the currency of
one country into the currency of another. The second is to provide some insurance against foreign
exchange risk (the adverse consequences of unpredictable changes in exchange rates).
Currency Conversion
B) International businesses have four main uses of foreign exchange markets. First, the payments a
company receives for its exports, the income it receives from foreign investments, or the income it
receives from licensing agreements with foreign firms may be in foreign currencies. Second,
international businesses use foreign exchange markets when they must pay a foreign company for
its products or services in its country’s currency. Third, international businesses use foreign
exchange markets when they have spare cash that they wish to invest for short terms in money
markets. Finally, currency speculation is another use of foreign exchange markets. Currency
speculation typically involves the short-term movement of funds from one currency to another in
the hopes of profiting from shifts in exchange rates. Carry trade involves borrowing in one
currency where interest rates are low and then using the proceeds to invest in another currency
where interest rates are high.
Teaching Tip: XE.com {http://www.xe.com/} provides a real time currency cross-rate chart, and
an option to do currency conversions.
Insuring Against Foreign Exchange Risk
C) A second function of the foreign exchange market is to provide insurance to protect against the
possible adverse consequences of unpredictable changes in exchange rates, or foreign exchange
risk.