May 8, 1995 Exchange rate fundamentals and the Canadian dollar Bank of Canada Review - Spring 1995 Robert Lafrance, Simon van Norden Views in the economic literature on the main factors that influence exchange rates have evolved over time in response to economic developments and new trends in economic theory. This article provides a brief interpretative survey of the main theories of exchange rate determination. The factors that influence exchange rate developments are varied and complex. However, the authors show that the broad movements of the Canada-U.S. real exchange rate since the early 1970s can be captured by a simple equation that highlights the role of commodity prices and Canada-U.S. interest rate differentials. The equation is used to interpret the evolution of the real exchange rate over the last two decades. At times, the real exchange rate deviates significantly from what the equation would predict. One explanation is that the equation omits certain factors that can influence the exchange rate, particularly in the short run. These may include fiscal policy variables, international indebtedness, political uncertainty, and investor sentiments—factors that are difficult to quantify but that have been particularly relevant in recent years. Content Type(s): Publications, Bank of Canada Review articles Topic(s): Exchange rates
Symétrie des chocs touchant les régions canadiennes et choix d'un régime de change Staff Working Paper 1994-9 Alain DeSerres, René Lalonde The authors attempt to determine whether the primary advantage of the flexible exchange rate between Canada and the United States—the rapid adjustment of the real exchange rate following an asymmetrical shock—is as evident at the regional as at the national level. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates
Exchange Rate Volatility and Trade: A Survey Staff Working Paper 1994-5 Agathe Côté This paper provides an extensive survey of the literature on exchange rate volatility and trade, examining both the theory that underlies the work in this area and the results of empirical studies published since 1988. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates
A Further Analysis of Exchange Rate Targeting in Canada Staff Working Paper 1994-2 Robert Amano, Tony S. Wirjanto In a recent paper Mercenier and Sekkat (1988) conclude that the Bank of Canada has followed a policy of exchange rate targeting using the money supply. We re-examine their results using a different estimation approach and with different assumptions about the forcing process of the exogenous variables. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates
Optimum Currency Areas and Shock Asymmetry: A Comparison of Europe and the United States Staff Working Paper 1994-1 Nick Chamie, Alain DeSerres, René Lalonde Since the early 1980s, models based on economic fundamentals have been poor at explaining the movements in the exchange rate (Messe 1990). In response to this problem, Frankel and Froot (1988) developed a model that uses two approaches to forecast the exchange rate: the fundamentalist approach, which bases the forecast on economic fundamentals, and the chartist approach, which bases the forecast on the past behaviour of the exchange rate. Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Exchange rates, Financial markets JEL Code(s): C, C4, C40, G, G1, G12
Les sources des fluctuations des taux de change en Europe et leurs implications pour l'union monétaire Technical Report No. 66 Alain DeSerres, René Lalonde The objective of this paper is to provide an empirical evaluation of the degree of shock asymmetry between eight European countries that would form the core of a monetary union. Given that the relevant measure is the degree of real shock asymmetry, our approach is to use the observed movement in real exchange rates as […] Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): Exchange rates JEL Code(s): F, F1, F15, F3, F31
Measuring the Profitability and Effectiveness of Foreign Exchange Market Intervention: Some Canadian Evidence Technical Report No. 53 John Murray, Mark Zelmer, Shane Williamson When the major industrial countries decided to move to a system of managed flexible exchange rates following the collapse of the Bretton Woods system, many observers thought that this would reduce, if not eliminate, the need for official foreign exchange market intervention. During the past fifteen years, however, intervention in most countries, including Canada, has […] Content Type(s): Staff research, Technical reports Topic(s): Exchange rates JEL Code(s): F, F3, F31, G, G1, G14