Presentation is loading. Please wait.

Presentation is loading. Please wait.

Fixed Exchange Rates and Foreign Exchange Intervention (Reference: Chapter 17 and IMF http://www.imf.org/external/np/mfd/er/index.asp 2004)

Similar presentations


Presentation on theme: "Fixed Exchange Rates and Foreign Exchange Intervention (Reference: Chapter 17 and IMF http://www.imf.org/external/np/mfd/er/index.asp 2004)"— Presentation transcript:

1 Fixed Exchange Rates and Foreign Exchange Intervention (Reference: Chapter 17 and IMF )

2 Chapter Organization Introduction Exchange rate regimes
Why Study Fixed Exchange Rates? Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rates Stabilization Policies with a Fixed Exchange Rate Balance of Payments Crises and Capital Flight Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention Reserve Currencies in the World Monetary System The Gold Standard Summary

3 Introduction In reality, the assumption of complete exchange rate flexibility is rarely accurate. Industrialized countries operate under a hybrid system of managed floating exchange rates. A system in which governments attempt to moderate exchange rate movements without keeping exchange rates rigidly fixed. A number of developing countries have retained some form of government exchange rate fixing. How do central banks intervene in the foreign exchange market?

4 EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES Exchange arrangements with no separate legal tender Currency boards Conventional fixed peg Pegged exchange rates within horizontal bands Crawling pegs Exchange rates within crawling bands Managed floating with no predetermined path for the exchange rate Independently floating The classification system is based on the members' actual, de facto arrangements as identified by IMF staff, which may differ from their officially announced arrangements. The scheme ranks exchange rate arrangements on the basis of their degree of flexibility and the existence of formal or informal commitments to exchange rate paths. These classifications help to assess the implications of the choice of exchange rate arrangement on the degree of independence of monetary policy. The system presents members' exchange rate regimes against alternative monetary policy frameworks in order to highlight the role of the exchange rate in broad economic policy and to illustrate that different exchange rate arrangements can be consistent with similar monetary frameworks

5 EXCHANGE ARRANGEMENTS WITH NO SEPARATE LEGAL TENDER
Currency of another country circulates as the sole legal tender (formal dollarization) Or membership of a monetary or currency union that shares same legal tender Implies the complete surrender of the monetary authorities' control over domestic monetary policy The currency of another country circulates as the sole legal tender (formal dollarization) Or the member belongs to a monetary or currency union in which the same legal tender is shared by the members of the union Adopting such a regime implies the complete surrender of the monetary authorities' control over domestic monetary policy Example; Ecuador and Panama with respect to the USD

6 CURRENCY BOARD ARRANGEMENTS
Explicit legislative commitment to exchange domestic currency for a specified foreign currency at a fixed exchange rate There are restrictions on the issuing authority to ensure the fulfillment of its legal obligation. Implies that domestic currency will be issued only against foreign exchange Domestic currency remains fully backed by foreign assets leaves little scope for discretionary monetary policy and eliminates traditional central bank functions Some flexibility may still be afforded, depending on how strict the banking rules of the currency board arrangement are This regime is based on an explicit legislative commitment to exchange domestic currency for a specified foreign currency at a fixed exchange rate, combined with restrictions on the issuing authority to ensure the fulfillment of its legal obligation This implies that domestic currency will be issued only against foreign exchange and that it remains fully backed by foreign assets leaves little scope for discretionary monetary policy and eliminating traditional central bank functions, such as monetary control and lender-of-last-resort. Some flexibility may still be afforded, depending on how strict the banking rules of the currency board arrangement are.

7 CONVENTIONAL FIXED PEG ARRANGEMENTS
The domestic currency is pegged within margins of ±1 percent or less against another currency or a basket of currencies There is no commitment to keep the parity irrevocably May fluctuate within margins of less than ±1 percent around a central rate- or the maximum and minimum value of the ER may remain within a margin of 2 percent- for at least three months fixed parity is maintained through direct or indirect intervention Flexibility of MP limited but greater than currency boards or no separate legal tender arrangements The country pegs its currency within margins of ±1 percent or less vis-à-vis another currency; a cooperative arrangement, such as the ERM II; or a basket of currencies, where the basket is formed from the currencies of major trading or financial partners and weights reflect the geographical distribution of trade, services, or capital flows The currency composites can also be standardized, as in the case of the SDR. There is no commitment to keep the parity irrevocably. The exchange rate may fluctuate within narrow margins of less than ±1 percent around a central rate—or the maximum and minimum value of the exchange rate may remain within a narrow margin of 2 percent—for at least three months. The monetary authority maintains the fixed parity through direct intervention (i.e., via sale/purchase of foreign exchange in the market) or indirect intervention (e.g., via the use of interest rate policy, imposition of foreign exchange regulations, exercise of moral suasion that constrains foreign exchange activity, or through intervention by other public institutions). Flexibility of monetary policy, though limited, is greater than in the case of exchange arrangements with no separate legal tender and currency boards because traditional central banking functions are still possible, and the monetary authority can adjust the level of the exchange rate, although relatively infrequently.

8 PEGGED E.R.s WITHIN HORIZONTAL BANDS
Currency is maintained within certain margins of fluctuation of more than ±1 percent around a fixed central rate Or the margin between the maximum and minimum value of the exchange rate exceeds 2 percent Reference may be made to a single currency, a cooperative arrangement, or a currency composite Limited degree of monetary policy discretion, depending on the band width The value of the currency is maintained within certain margins of fluctuation of more than ±1 percent around a fixed central rate or the margin between the maximum and minimum value of the exchange rate exceeds 2 percent As in the case of conventional fixed pegs, reference may be made to a single currency, a cooperative arrangement, or a currency composite There is a limited degree of monetary policy discretion, depending on the band width.

9 CRAWLING PEGS Currency adjusted periodically in small amounts at a fixed rate Could be set in terms of a single currency or basket of currencies Monetary authorities may announce in advance when they will change the exchange rate and by how much or may make public the formula they will use to make the adjustment e.g. inflation rates differential or in response to changes in selective quantitative indicators Imposes constraints on monetary policy in a manner similar to a fixed peg system The currency is adjusted periodically in small amounts at a fixed rate or in response to changes in selective quantitative indicators such as past inflation differentials vis-à-vis major trading partners differentials between the inflation target and expected inflation in major trading partners The rate of crawl can be set to adjust for measured inflation or other indicators (backward looking), or set at a preannounced fixed rate and/or below the projected inflation differentials (forward looking) Maintaining a crawling peg imposes constraints on monetary policy in a manner similar to a fixed peg system

10 EXCHANGE RATES WITHIN CRAWLING BANDS
Currency is maintained within certain fluctuation margins of at least ±1 percent around a central rate or the margin between the maximum and minimum value of the exchange rate exceeds 2 percent and the central rate or margins are adjusted periodically at a fixed rate or in response to changes in selective quantitative indicators The degree of exchange rate flexibility is a function of the band width Types of bands symmetric around a crawling central parity or widen gradually with an asymmetric choice of the crawl of upper and lower bands Imposes constraints on monetary policy The currency is maintained within certain fluctuation margins of at least ±1 percent around a central rate or the margin between the maximum and minimum value of the exchange rate exceeds 2 percent and the central rate or margins are adjusted periodically at a fixed rate or in response to changes in selective quantitative indicators The degree of exchange rate flexibility is a function of the band width. Bands are either symmetric around a crawling central parity or widen gradually with an asymmetric choice of the crawl of upper and lower bands (in the latter case, there may be no preannounced central rate). The commitment to maintain the exchange rate within the band imposes constraints on monetary policy, with the degree of policy independence being a function of the band width.

11 MANAGED FLOATING EXCHANGE RATE
Monetary Authority attempts to influence the E.R. without having a specific E.R. path or target Indicators for managing the rate are broadly judgmental (e.g. BOP position, international reserves, parallel market dev’ts) Adjustments may not be automatic Intervention may be direct or indirect. The monetary authority attempts to influence the exchange rate without having a specific exchange rate path or target. Indicators for managing the rate are broadly judgmental (e.g., balance of payments position, international reserves, parallel market developments), and adjustments may not be automatic Intervention may be direct or indirect .

12 INDEPENDENTLY FLOATING EXCHANGE RATE
Exchange rate is market-determined Official foreign exchange market intervention is aimed at moderating the rate of change and preventing undue fluctuations The exchange rate is market-determined Any official foreign exchange market intervention is aimed at moderating the rate of change and preventing undue fluctuations in the exchange rate, rather than at establishing a level for it.

13 FEATURES OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES

14 Why Study Fixed Exchange Rates?
Four reasons to study fixed exchange rates: Managed floating Regional currency arrangements Developing countries and countries in transition Lessons of the past for the future Managed floating Dollar FX rates of industrialized countries are not currently fixed by governments but they are not always left to fluctuate freely either This system of floating dollar exchange rates is often referred to as a dirty float, to distinguish from a clean float in which governments make no direct attempts to influence currency values. Because the present monetary system is a hybrid of the “pure” fixed and floating rate systems, an understanding of fixed exchange rates gives us insight into the effects of FX intervention when it occurs under floating rates. Regional currency arrangements Some countries belong to exchange rate unions (organizations) whose members agree to fix their mutual exchange rates while allowing their currencies to fluctuate against nonmember countries. For example Denmark peg’s its currency value against the euro with the European Union’s Exchange Rate Mechanism. Developing countries and countries in transition peg the values of their currencies often in terms of the USD, sometimes the euro or a basket of currencies such as the SDR

15 IMF CLASSIFICATION OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORKS (As at April 2008)

16 IMF CLASSIFICATION OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORKS

17 IMF CLASSIFICATION OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORKS

18 IMF CLASSIFICATION OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORKS

19 IMF CLASSIFICATION OF EXCHANGE RATE REGIMES AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORKS

20 EXCHANGE RATE REGIME AND MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORK OF GHANA
Managed Floating (According to IMF, using Data as of April 31, 2008) Independently Floating (According to BOG) Inflation Targeting

21 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
The Central Bank Balance Sheet and the Money Supply Central bank balance sheet It records the assets held by the central bank and its liabilities. It is organized according to the principles of double-entry bookkeeping. Any acquisition of an asset by the central bank results in a + change on the assets side of the balance sheet. Any increase in the bank’s liabilities results in a + change on the balance sheet’s liabilities side.

22 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
The assets side of a balance sheet lists two types of assets: Foreign assets Mainly foreign currency bonds owned by the central bank (its official international reserves) Domestic assets Central bank holdings of claims to future payments by its own citizens and domestic institutions The liabilities side of a balance sheet lists as liabilities: Deposits of private banks Currency in circulation Total assets = total liabilities + net worth Domestic Aseets: takes the form of domestic government bonds and loans to domestic private banks

23 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
Net worth is constant. The changes in central bank assets cause equal changes in central bank liabilities. Any central bank purchase of assets automatically results in an increase in the domestic money supply. Any central bank sale of assets automatically causes the money supply to decline.

24 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
Foreign Exchange Intervention and the Money Supply The central bank balance sheet shows how foreign exchange intervention affects the money supply because the central bank’s liabilities are the base of the domestic money supply process. The central bank can negate the money supply effect of intervention though sterilization.

25 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
Sterilization Sterilized foreign exchange intervention Central banks sometimes carry out equal foreign and domestic asset transactions in opposite directions to nullify the impact of their foreign exchange operations on the domestic money supply. With no sterilization, there is a link between the balance of payments and national money supplies that depends on how central banks share the burden of financing payments gaps.

26 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
Table 17-2: Effects of a $100 Foreign Exchange Intervention: Summary

27 Central Bank Intervention and the Money Supply
The Balance of Payments and the Money Supply If central banks are not sterilizing and the home country has a balance of payments surplus: An increase in the home central bank’s foreign assets implies an increased home money supply. A decrease in a foreign central bank’s claims on the home country implies a decreased foreign money supply.

28 How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rate
Foreign Exchange Market Equilibrium Under a Fixed Exchange Rate The foreign exchange market is in equilibrium when: R = R* + (Ee – E)/E When the central bank fixes E at E0, the expected rate of domestic currency depreciation is zero. The interest parity condition implies that E0 is today’s equilibrium exchange rate only if: R = R*. R=Domestic interest rate R*=foreign interest rate (Ee-E)/E=expected exchange rate depreciation

29 How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rate
Money Market Equilibrium Under a Fixed Exchange Rate To hold the domestic interest rate at R*, the central bank’s foreign exchange intervention must adjust the money supply so that: MS/P = L(R*, Y) Example: Suppose the central bank has been fixing E at E0 and that asset markets are in equilibrium. An increase in output would raise the money demand and thus lead to a higher interest rate and an appreciation of the home currency.

30 How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rate
The central bank must intervene in the foreign exchange market by buying foreign assets in order to prevent this appreciation. If the central bank does not purchase foreign assets when output increases but instead holds the money stock constant, it cannot keep the exchange rate fixed at E0.

31 How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rate
A Diagrammatic Analysis To hold the exchange rate fixed at E0 when output rises, the central bank must purchase foreign assets and thereby raise the money supply.

32 How the Central Bank Fixes the Exchange Rate
Figure 17-1: Asset Market Equilibrium with a Fixed Exchange Rate, E0 Real domestic money holdings Domestic Interest rate, R Exchange rate, E Domestic-currency return on foreign-currency deposits, R* + (E0 – E)/E 1' E0 3' R* 1 Real money demand, L(R, Y1) Real money supply M1 P L(R, Y2) Figure 17.1 shows the simultaneous equilibrium of the foreign exchange and domestic money markets when the exchange rate is fixed at Eo. Money market equilibrium is initially at point 1 in the lower part of the figure (where real money demand equals real money supply. At point 1, for given levels of P and Y1, money supply must equal M1 when the domestic interest rate, R equals the foreign interest rate, R*. To hold the exchange rate at Eo when output rises from Y1 to Y2, the central bank must purchase foreign assets and thereby raise the money supply from M1 to M2. 3 M2 P 2

33 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Monetary Policy Under a fixed exchange rate, central bank monetary policy tools are powerless to affect the economy’s money supply or its output. Figure 17-2 shows the economy’s short-run equilibrium as point 1 when the central bank fixes the exchange rate at the level E0.

34 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Figure 17-2: Monetary Expansion Is Ineffective Under a Fixed Exchange Rate Output, Y Exchange rate, E DD AA2 AA1 E2 Y2 2 E0 Y1 1 Figure 17-2 shows the economy’s short-run equilibrium as point 1 when the central bank fixes the exchange rate at the level E0. Monetary expansion is ineffective under a fixed exchange rate. Initial equilibrium is at point 1, where the output and asset markets simultaneously clear at the fixed exchange rate of E0 and output level of Y1. hoping to increase output to Y2, the central bank decides to increase money supply by buying domestic assets and shifting AA1 to AA2. because the central bank must maintain E0, however, it has to sell foerign foreign assets for domestic currency, an action that decreases money supply immediately and returns AA2 back to AA1. the economy’s equilibrium therefore remains at point 1, with output unchanged at Y1. under a fixed exchange therefore, central bank monetary policy tools are powerless to affect the economy’s money supply or its output. Note (ref. chp 16): The DD schedule shows all combinations of output and the exchange rate for which the output market is in short-run equilibrium (aggregate demand = aggregate output). It slopes upward because a rise in the exchange rate causes output to rise. The AA Schedule shows all combinations of exchange rate and output that are consistent with equilibrium in the domestic money market and the foreign exchange market. It relates exchange rates and output levels that keep the money and foreign exchange markets in equilibrium. It slopes downward because a rise in output causes a rise in the home interest rate and a domestic currency appreciation.

35 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Fiscal Policy How does the central bank intervention hold the exchange rate fixed after the fiscal expansion? The rise in output due to expansionary fiscal policy raises money demand. To prevent an increase in the home interest rate and an appreciation of the currency, the central bank must buy foreign assets with money (i.e., increasing the money supply). The effects of expansionary fiscal policy when the economy’s initial equilibrium is at point 1 are illustrated in Figure 17-3. Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc.

36 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Figure 17-3: Fiscal Expansion Under a Fixed Exchange Rate Output, Y Exchange rate, E DD1 AA2 DD2 AA1 3 Y3 E0 Y1 1 E2 Y2 2 Figure 17-3 illustrates Fiscal Expansion Under a Fixed Exchange Rate. Fiscal expansion (shown by the shift from DD1 to DD2) and the intervention that accompanies it (the shift from AA1 to AA2) move the economy from point 1 to point 3.

37 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Changes in the Exchange Rate Devaluation It occurs when the central bank raises the domestic currency price of foreign currency, E. It causes: A rise in output A rise in official reserves An expansion of the money supply It is chosen by governments to: Fight domestic unemployment Improve the current account Affect the central bank's foreign reserves

38 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Revaluation It occurs when the central bank lowers E. In order to devalue or revalue, the central bank has to announce its willingness to trade domestic against foreign currency, in unlimited amounts, at the new exchange rate. Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc.

39 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Figure 17-4: Effects of a Currency Devaluation Output, Y Exchange rate, E DD AA2 AA1 E1 Y2 2 E0 Y1 1 Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc.

40 Stabilization Policies With a Fixed Exchange Rate
Adjustment to Fiscal Policy and Exchange Rate Changes Fiscal expansion causes P to rise. There is no real appreciation in the short-run There is real appreciation in the long-run Devaluation is neutral in the long-run.

41 Balance of Payments Crises and Capital Flight
Balance of payments crisis It is a sharp change in official foreign reserves sparked by a change in expectations about the future exchange rate.

42 Balance of Payments Crises and Capital Flight
Figure 17-7: Capital Flight, the Money Supply, and the Interest Rate Real domestic money holdings Domestic Interest rate, R Exchange rate, E R* + (E1– E)/E R* + (E0 – E)/E E0 1' 2' R* 1 2 R* + (E1 – E0)/E0 L(R, Y) M2 P Real money supply M1 P Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc.

43 Balance of Payments Crises and Capital Flight
The expectation of a future devaluation causes: A balance of payments crisis marked by a sharp fall in reserves A rise in the home interest rate above the world interest rate An expected revaluation causes the opposite effects of an expected devaluation.

44 Balance of Payments Crises and Capital Flight
The reserve loss accompanying a devaluation scare The associated debit in the balance of payments accounts is a private capital outflow. Self-fulfilling currency crises It occurs when an economy is vulnerable to speculation. The government may be responsible for such crises by creating or tolerating domestic economic weaknesses that invite speculators to attack the currency.

45 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Under managed floating, monetary policy is influenced by exchange rate change. Perfect Asset Substitutability and the Ineffectiveness of Sterilized Intervention When a central bank carries out a sterilized foreign exchange intervention, its transactions leave the domestic money supply unchanged.

46 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Perfect asset substitutability The foreign exchange market is in equilibrium only when the expected return on domestic and foreign currency bonds are the same. Central banks cannot control the money supply and the exchange rate through sterilized foreign exchange intervention.

47 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Imperfect asset substitutability Assets’ expected returns can differ in equilibrium. Risk is the main factor that may lead to imperfect asset substitutability in foreign exchange markets. Central banks may be able to control both the money supply and the exchange rate through sterilized foreign exchange intervention.

48 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Foreign Exchange Market Equilibrium Under Imperfect Asset Substitutability When domestic and foreign currency bonds are perfect substitutes, the foreign exchange market is in equilibrium only if the interest parity condition holds: R = R* + (Ee – E)/E (17-1) This condition does not hold when domestic and foreign currency bonds are imperfect substitutes.

49 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Equilibrium in the foreign exchange market requires that: R = R* + (Ee – E)/E +  (17-2) where:  is a risk premium that reflects the difference between the riskiness of domestic and foreign bonds The risk premium depends positively on the stock of domestic government debt:  = (B – A) (17-3) B is the stock of domestic government debt A is domestic assets of the central bank

50 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
The Effects of Sterilized Intervention with Imperfect Asset Substitutability A sterilized purchase of foreign assets leaves the money supply unchanged but raises the risk adjusted return that domestic currency deposits must offer in equilibrium. Figure 17-8 illustrates the effects of a sterilized purchase of foreign assets by the central bank. The purchase of foreign assets is matched by a sale of domestic assets (from A1 to A2).

51 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Figure 17-8: Effect of a Sterilized Central Bank Purchase of Foreign Assets Under Imperfect Asset Substitutability Real domestic money holdings Domestic Interest rate, R Exchange rate, E Sterilized purchase of foreign assets Risk-adjusted domestic-currency return on foreign currency deposits, R* + (Ee– E)/E + (B –A2) 2' E2 1' E1 R* + (Ee – E)/E + (B –A1) 1 R1 L(R, Y) Ms P Real money supply

52 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
Evidence on the Effects of Sterilized Intervention Empirical evidence provides little support for the idea that sterilized intervention has a significant direct effect on exchange rates.

53 Managed Floating and Sterilized Intervention
The Signaling Effect of Intervention Signaling effect of foreign exchange intervention An important complicating factor in econometric efforts to study the effects of sterilization Sterilized intervention may give an indication of where the central bank expects (or desires) the exchange rate to move. This signal can change market views of future policies even when domestic and foreign bonds are perfect substitutes.

54 Reserve Currencies in the World Monetary System
Two possible systems for fixing the exchange rates: Reserve currency standard Central banks peg the prices of their currencies in terms of a reserve currency. The currency central banks hold in their international reserves. Gold standard Central banks peg the prices of their currencies in terms of gold.

55 Reserve Currencies in the World Monetary System
The two systems have very different implications about: How countries share the burden of balance of payments financing The growth and control of national money supplies

56 Reserve Currencies in the World Monetary System
The Mechanics of a Reserve Currency Standard The workings of a reserve currency system can be illustrated by the system based on the U.S. dollar set up at the end of World War II. Every central bank fixed the dollar exchange rate of its currency through foreign exchange market trades of domestic currency for dollar assets. Exchange rates between any two currencies were fixed.

57 Reserve Currencies in the World Monetary System
The Asymmetric Position of the Reserve Center The reserve-issuing country can use its monetary policy for macroeconomic stabilization even though it has fixed exchange rates. The purchase of domestic assets by the central bank of the reverse currency country leads to: Excess demand for foreign currencies in the foreign exchange market Expansionary monetary policies by all other central banks Higher world output

58 The Gold Standard Each country fixes the price of its currency in terms of gold. No single country occupies a privileged position within the system. The Mechanics of a Gold Standard Exchange rates between any two currencies were fixed. Example: If the dollar price of gold is pegged at $35 per ounce by the Federal Reserve while the pound price of gold is pegged at £14.58 per ounce by the Bank of England, the dollar/pound exchange rate must be constant at $2.40 per pound.

59 The Gold Standard Symmetric Monetary Adjustment Under a Gold Standard
Whenever a country is losing reserves and its money supply shrinks as a consequence, foreign countries are gaining reserves and their money supplies expand. Benefits and Drawbacks of the Gold Standard Benefits: It avoids the asymmetry inherent in a reserve currency standard. It places constraints on the growth of countries’ money supplies.

60 The Gold Standard Drawbacks:
It places undesirable constraints on the use of monetary policy to fight unemployment. It ensures a stable overall price level only if the relative price of gold and other goods and services is stable. It makes central banks compete for reserves and bring about world unemployment. It could give gold producing countries (like Russia and South Africa) too much power.

61 The Gold Standard Bimetallic standard
The currency was based on both silver and gold. The U.S. was bimetallic from 1837 until the Civil War. In a bimetallic system, a country’s mint will coin specified amounts of gold or silver into the national currency unit. Example: grains of silver or grains of gold could be turned into a silver or a gold dollar. This made gold worth /23.22 = 16 times as much as silver. It might reduce the price-level instability resulting from use of one of the metals alone.

62 The Gold Standard The Gold Exchange Standard
Central banks’ reserves consist of gold and currencies whose prices in terms of gold are fixed. Each central bank fixes its exchange rate to a currency with a fixed gold price. It can operate like a gold standard in restraining excessive monetary growth throughout the world, but it allows more flexibility in the growth of international reserves.

63 Summary There is a direct link between central bank intervention in the foreign exchange market and the domestic money supply. When a country’s central bank purchases (sells) foreign assets, the country's money supply automatically increases (decreases). The central bank balance sheet shows how foreign exchange intervention affects the money supply. The central bank can negate the money supply effect of intervention through sterilization.

64 Summary A central bank can fix the exchange rate of its currency against foreign currency if it trades unlimited amounts of domestic money against foreign assets at that rate. A commitment to fix the exchange rate forces the central bank to sacrifice its ability to use monetary policy for stabilization. Fiscal policy has a more powerful effect on output under fixed exchange rates than under floating rates. Balance of payments crises occur when market participants expect the central bank to change the exchange rate from its current level.

65 Summary Self-fulfilling currency crises can occur when an economy is vulnerable to speculation. A system of managed floating allows the central bank to retain some ability to control the domestic money supply. A world system of fixed exchange rates in which countries peg the prices of their currencies in terms of a reserve currency involves a striking asymmetry. A gold standard avoids the asymmetry inherent in a reserve currency standard. A related arrangement was the bimetallic standard based on both silver and gold.


Download ppt "Fixed Exchange Rates and Foreign Exchange Intervention (Reference: Chapter 17 and IMF http://www.imf.org/external/np/mfd/er/index.asp 2004)"

Similar presentations


Ads by Google