08/02: Do Exporters Cut the Hedge? Who Hedges, When and Why?
[ Last Updated 18 March 2008 ]
Short Description
This paper uses data derived from the prototype Longitudinal Business Database to analyse the currency denomination and hedging behaviour of New Zealand merchandise exporters.
Author
Richard Fabling (Reserve Bank of New Zealand), Arthur Grimes (Motu Economic and Public Policy Research)
May 2008
- ISBN: 978-0-478-31665-0 (HTML)
- ISBN: 978-0-478-31657-5 (PDF)
Abstract
We use data derived from the Longitudinal Business Database (LBD) to analyse the currency denomination and hedging behaviour of New Zealand merchandise exporters. For instance: In which currencies are New Zealand merchandise exports by country of destination denominated? Do different types of firms (e.g. by size or sector) display different hedging practices? Does the "cost" of hedging (forward points) make any difference to hedging decisions? Is hedging consistent over the exchange rate cycle or do (some) exporters selectively hedge when the exchange rate reaches historical extremes? Has selective hedging been a profitable strategy for New Zealand exporters? Our results have implications for the capability of exporters to handle exchange rate volatility and for the potential impact of exchange rate volatility on exports.
JEL Classification: D21; O12
Keywords: Hedging behaviour; exporting; exchange rates
Contact: Occasionalpapers@med.govt.nz
Document Table of Contents
Disclaimer
Access to the data used in this study was provided by Statistics New Zealand under conditions designed to give effect to the security and confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act 1975. The research was funded by the Ministry of Economic Development and supported by Statistics New Zealand as part of the Improved Business Understanding via Longitudinal Database Development project (IBULDD). Any views expressed are those of the authors and do not purport to represent Statistics New Zealand, the Ministry of Economic Development or any other agencies to which the authors are affiliated.
The results of this study are based in part on tax data supplied by Inland Revenue to Statistics New Zealand under the Tax Administration Act. This tax data must be used only for statistical purposes, and no individual information is provided back to Inland Revenue for administrative or regulatory purposes. Any discussion of data limitations or weaknesses is in the context of using the data for statistical purposes, and is not related to the ability of the data to support Inland Revenue's core operational requirements. Careful consideration has been given to the privacy, security and confidentiality issues associated with using tax data in this project. In particular, in the IBULDD dataset, individuals' tax data has been aggregated to the firm-level. Furthermore, only people authorised by the Statistics Act 1975 are allowed to see data about a particular firm.
The views, opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Occasional Paper are strictly those of the author(s). They do not necessarily reflect the views of the Ministry of Economic Development. The Ministry takes no responsibility for any errors or omissions in, or for the correctness of, the information contained in these occasional papers. The paper is presented not as policy, but with a view to inform and stimulate wider debate.
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