Currency Hedging for International Portfolios

Currency Hedging for International Portfolios PDF Author: Jochen M. Schmittmann
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1455201340
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Book Description
This paper examines the benefits from hedging the currency exposure of international investments in single- and multi-country equity and bond portfolios from the perspectives of German, Japanese, British and American investors. Over the period 1975 to 2009, hedging of currency risk substantially reduced the volatility of foreign investments at a quarterly investment horizon. Contrary to previous studies, the paper finds that at longer investment horizons of up to five years the case for hedging for risk reduction purposes remained strong.In addition to its impact on risk, hedging affected returns in economically meaningful magnitudes in some cases.

Currency Hedging for International Portfolios

Currency Hedging for International Portfolios PDF Author: Jochen M. Schmittmann
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1455201340
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Book Description
This paper examines the benefits from hedging the currency exposure of international investments in single- and multi-country equity and bond portfolios from the perspectives of German, Japanese, British and American investors. Over the period 1975 to 2009, hedging of currency risk substantially reduced the volatility of foreign investments at a quarterly investment horizon. Contrary to previous studies, the paper finds that at longer investment horizons of up to five years the case for hedging for risk reduction purposes remained strong.In addition to its impact on risk, hedging affected returns in economically meaningful magnitudes in some cases.

CURRENCY Hedging for International Portfolios

CURRENCY Hedging for International Portfolios PDF Author: Jack Glen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


Some Like It Hedged

Some Like It Hedged PDF Author: Momtchil Pojarliev
Publisher: CFA Institute Research Foundation
ISBN: 1944960597
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 24

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Book Description
Foreign currency exposure is a by-product of international investing. When obtaining global asset exposure, investors also obtain the embedded foreign currency exposure. Left unmanaged, this currency exposure acts like a buy-and-hold currency strategy, which receives little or no risk premium and adds unwanted volatility. In “Some Like It Hedged,” the author shows that the impact of foreign currency exposure on institutional portfolios depends significantly on the base currency of the investors and the specific composition of their portfolios. In general, investors whose base currency is negatively correlated with global equities, as are the US dollar and the Japanese yen, will reduce the volatility of their portfolios by fully hedging foreign currency exposure. In contrast, investors whose home currency is positively correlated with global equities, as is the Canadian dollar, will benefit from keeping some unhedged foreign currency exposure—in particular, exposure to the US dollar. Finally, investors with larger allocations to domestic assets will experience only small reductions in volatility from hedging. Pojarliev discusses a variety of options to address foreign currency exposures. Although there is no single best-practice solution for addressing foreign currency exposures, institutional investors have three main choices. Do nothing (i.e., maintain unhedged foreign currency exposure). Doing nothing is always the easiest option, but from a risk–return perspective, it could be the worst available choice. Currency has no long-term expected return because, although it is a risk exposure, it is not an economic asset. Hence, long-term currency returns are expected to be zero. Hedging should, therefore, have no long-term impact on the return and only affect the volatility. The volatility reduction from hedging can be redeployed more efficiently by increasing exposure to economic assets for which a risk premium exists. Hedge passively (i.e., maintain a constant hedge ratio).In general, hedging some of the foreign currency risk will decrease the volatility of the portfolio. The relationship between a specific hedge ratio and the decrease in volatility depends on the particular portfolio and, most importantly, on the base currency of the investor. Yet, passive hedging creates its own problems, including negative cash flow generation when foreign currencies are appreciating and detraction from returns because of hedging costs. Passive hedging might also introduce a major market-timing risk. If the base currency weakens after a passive policy is implemented, the investor will suffer substantial hedging losses when the forward currency hedging contracts settle. Hedge actively (i.e., vary the hedge ratio). One way to address the market-timing risk of implementing a passive hedging program is to actively time the hedging of the foreign currencies. An active hedging program seeks to reduce the risk of the foreign currency exposure but varies the hedge ratios for the various currencies based on market views to avoid negative cash flow and to generate positive returns. A successful active hedging program should both add to the return of the portfolio and lower the volatility, and it should outperform both an unhedged and a passive hedging benchmark. The best choice to address foreign currency exposure will differ from institution to institution, but it boils down to two fundamental factors. First, the optimal solution depends on the importance of risk versus return and the institution’s tolerance for negative cash flow. Second, investors must decide whether they believe that currency managers are able to achieve a positive information ratio over the long run after fees and, importantly, whether they will be able to identify these currency managers. Any currency policy will depend on the details of the specific portfolio—in particular, on the base currency of the investor and the size of the foreign currency exposure.

The Currency Hedging Debate

The Currency Hedging Debate PDF Author: Lee R. Thomas
Publisher: Ifr Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Financial futures
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
This title provides a forum for the discussion surrounding the use of currency hedging for portfolio managment and examines the arguments for the different hedging techniques. The main arguments are outlined with contributions from both academics and practitioners. The evidence on the performance of various funds is examined in detail.

Internationally Diversified Bond Portfolios

Internationally Diversified Bond Portfolios PDF Author: Richard M. Levich
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Bond funds
Languages : en
Pages : 48

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Book Description
A new statistical procedure is used to test for weak form efficiency in the foreign exchange futures markets. Using daily currency futures prices for the 1976-1990 period, we conclude that successive exchange rate changes have not been independent We examine the implications of this finding for two groups of investors: (1) return seeking investors considering foreign exchange as a separate asset class; (2) international portfolio investors deciding whether or not to currency hedge the foreign exchange rate exposures embedded in their non-dollar investments. Using the currency futures data and monthly data on 10-year dollar and non-dollar bonds, we conclude that active currency risk management, based on a simple application of technical trading signals, can substantially improve the risk-return opportunities for both groups of investors in comparison to passive currency strategies.

Currency Hedging for International Stock Portfolios: a General Approach

Currency Hedging for International Stock Portfolios: a General Approach PDF Author: Frans A. de Roon
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Hedging (Finance)
Languages : en
Pages : 35

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Book Description


Currency Overlay

Currency Overlay PDF Author: Neil Record
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470871636
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
Currency overlay is the management of the currency exposure inherent in cross-border institutional investments. Exposure to foreign currencies increases the volatility of their returns, without increasing the returns themselves and academics and consultants recommended that the currency exposure should be stripped out of international portfolios and eliminated as far as practicable. This book provides a comprehensive description of currency overlay, its history and possible future developments and growth, the reason for its emergence, the debates and controversies, the different styles of currency management, and the industry's performance track record. This is a subject of international appeal and is an area of particular growth potential for institutional investors. Coverage includes: The theoretical case for eliminating currency risk in international portfolios The interplay between asset returns and currency returns, and the effect of this on hedging decisions Benchmarks - their construction and strategic role Least-cost passive overlay The structure of the currency market, and its 'inefficiencies' Active overlay styles Active overlay both restricted and unrestricted (currency alpha) Uses diagrams, charts, tables and explanatory boxes to explain concepts

Managing Foreign Exchange Risk

Managing Foreign Exchange Risk PDF Author: David F. DeRosa
Publisher: Irwin Professional Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Balance of payments
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description


Global Portfolios

Global Portfolios PDF Author: Robert Z. Aliber
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 376

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Book Description
BUSINESS/ECONOMICS

The International Diversification Puzzle when Goods Prices Are Sticky

The International Diversification Puzzle when Goods Prices Are Sticky PDF Author: Mr.Charles Engel
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
ISBN: 1451871597
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 49

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Book Description
This paper develops a two-country monetary DSGE model in which households choose a portfolio of home and foreign equities, and a forward position in foreign exchange. Some nominal goods prices are sticky. Trade in these assets achieves the same allocations as trade in a complete set of nominal state-contingent claims in our linearized model. When there is a high degree of price stickiness, we show that not much equity diversification is required to replicate the complete-markets equilibrium when agents are able to hedge foreign exchange risk sufficiently. Moreover, temporarily sticky nominal goods prices can have large effects on equity portfolios even when dividend processes are very persistent.