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The objective of this paper is to extend research findings obtained in a preliminary survey of currency risk management in UK multinational companies (Collier and Davis, 1985) by presenting a case study analysis of currency risk management practice in large UK and US multinational companies. The research is specifically concerned with aspects of the management of foreign currency transaction and translation risk by multinational companies and the extent of risk aversion in the policies adopted.

Examines the cost performance of various strategies for managing foreign exchange risk in international sourcing. The strategies represent a broad spectrum of approaches to exchange risk, ranging from naïve to active. Of particular interest is the comparison of those strategies which use exchange rate forecasts with those which do not. Focuses on movements in the German mark/US dollar exchange rate for the period January 1986 through December 1990. Employs a historical simulation methodology to compare the performance of various strategies over this time frame. The results suggest that active approaches to exchange rate management warrant further attention.

This case study examines the controversial practice by the Commonwealth of Australia during the period 1988–2002 of using currency swaps as part of its debt management strategy. Although the strategy provided a positive return overall, the impact of currency swap usage created significant year-by-year variations in returns, which posed a risk to debt interest and financing requirements. This suggests that the risk limits imposed on this strategy were both inappropriate and insufficient. Nonetheless, these findings provide insights into how such a policy could best be implemented given recent proposals (OECD, 2007) for derivatives use by public debt managers.

To understand how foreign exchange risk is managed it may be important to document who is involved in its management. Different individuals working in corporations will have different perspectives and different backgrounds including functional specialisms which fit them for functional roles. They will have specific job responsibilities inherent in their job descriptions. It is hypothesised that the nature of who gets involved in managing foreign exchange risk will impact on how it is managed. This paper reports on the findings of a postal survey of foreign exchange risk management practices in British Times 1000 corporations carried out in late 1991. The findings give support to the hypothesis and raise the issue of whether optimal foreign exchange risk management can occur when how it is managed is significantly influenced by who manages it. This is particularly so, given that the nature of the exposure reported by different corporations is not normally found to be significantly associated with who manages it. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of the implications of the findings.

According to academics, the translation form of exchange rate risk does not affect the market value of a firm and as a result should not be managed by corporate managers. Research to date, however, suggests that many multinational companies (MNCs) actively monitor and manage their translation exchange risk. Thus, either corporate management fail to understand the irrelevant nature of this risk or there are other factors that need to be considered. This paper extends the current literature by examining these issues; in particular, it examines whether MNCs continue to manage their translation exchange rate risk and if so what their reasons are for the specific practices. Results suggest that the gearing ratio, itself a measure of risk, is largely responsible for the management of the translation process. Further, some companies seek to manage their ‘profit and loss translation exchange risk,’ a ‘risk’ resulting from the impact of the translation process on the profit and loss account. Preferred management strategies include the currency denomination of debt and use of financial instruments such as forward contracts. Capital market imperfections reflected in binding loan covenants, agency theory problems and the assumption of inefficient market behaviour explain the observed corporate management behaviour.

Changes in the financial and competitive environment have been a recurring stimulus to corporate reappraisal of foreign exchange risk management (FERM) policy. In 14 UK company cases studied by the author, treasurers identified the following competitive and financial environmental influences on FERM policy.

The present study aims to reveal knowledge, report on perception level and look at the evaluation of exchange rate risk management techniques of enterprises registered to Afyonkarahisar Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In order to achieve this, the authors conducted a study that included a field-survey and consisted of 223 enterprises that have foreign trade transactions in Afyonkarahisar city. The data that were used in the analysis had been collected via a survey and they were statistically evaluated by SPSS program.

Within the scope of the study, the authors investigated the determination of corporational identity of the sampled manufacturing enterprises, organisational structure of finance departments, determination of ownership structures of these enterprises, determination of foreign exchange risk perceptions, classification of exchange rate risks according to industry type and the determination of risk management instruments such as internal and external hedging strategies and information and usage levels of derivative instruments.

The most important result obtained in the study is that the majority of the companies, which operate in a competitive environment, are intensely exposed to foreign exchange risk but try to overcome the foreign exchange risk using traditional internal firm-level hedging methods instead of well-reputed external hedging methods or derivative instruments. Firms declared to be out of knowledge – by any means – for derivative instruments as the main reason for not utilising a well-reputed external foreign exchange risk management techniques.

This paper seeks to provide foreign exchange risk measurement/management techniques and strategies that can be applied to investment and trading portfolios in emerging financial markets, such as the Moroccan foreign exchange market, with the objective of setting up the basis of a methodology/procedure for the measurement, management and control of foreign exchange exposures in the day‐to‐day trading operations.

Demonstrates a proactive approach for the measurements, management and control of market risk exposure for financial trading portfolios that contain foreign exchange securities. This approach is based on the renowned concept of value‐at‐risk (VAR) along with the creation of a software tool utilizing matrix‐algebra technique. In order to illustrate the proper use of VAR and stress‐testing methods, real‐world examples and practical reports of foreign exchange trading risk management are presented for the Moroccan Dirham.

To this end, several case studies were achieved with the objective of setting up a practical framework of trading risk measurement and control reports in addition to the inception of procedures for the calculation of VAR's limits. Moreover, the effects of hedging of foreign exchange trading exposures with reciprocal equity trading positions were explored and quantified. Finally, initial empirical tests of the long‐term behavior of the Moroccan foreign exchange and debt markets were quantified and analyzed.

In this work, key foreign exchange trading risk management methods, rules and procedures that financial entities, regulators and policymakers should consider in setting up their daily foreign exchange trading risk management objectives are examined and adapted to the specific needs of emerging markets, such as in the context of the Moroccan foreign exchange market.

This paper fills a gap in the foreign exchange risk management literature especially in the emerging markets perspective. The risk management procedures that are discussed in this work will aid financial markets' participants, regulators and policymakers in founding sound and up‐to‐date policies to handle foreign exchange risk exposures.

This paper reports the results of an empirical study undertaken during 1988 into firstly the opinions of corporate treasurers in UK multinational corporations on the process of financial innovation and the relationship between the corporates and their banks in the context of this process, and secondly the use of financial innovations in the MNCs' management of foreign exchange risk. It concludes that in general treasurers were sceptical about financial innovations, and that the relationship between the corporates and their banks appeared to be going through a difficult phase reflecting the breaking up of traditional links between banks and their corporate customers. The findings on the use of financial innovations varied; while currency futures were not used at all by the MNCs, the treasurers tried out the use of currency options and swaps. A general conclusion was that the corporates' exchange risk management practices were short term orientated and innovations were incorporated into the day‐to‐day management of positions rather than into longer term strategic decisions.