Limits of floating exchange rates: The role of foreign currency debt and import structure

Pascal Towbin and Sebastian Weber

Journal of Development Economics, 2013, vol. 101, issue C, 179-194

Abstract: A traditional argument in favor of flexible exchange rates is that they insulate output better from real shocks, because the exchange rate can adjust and stabilize demand for domestic goods through expenditure switching. This argument is weakened in models with high foreign currency debt and low exchange rate pass-through to import prices. The present study evaluates the empirical relevance of these two factors. We analyze the transmission of real external shocks to the domestic economy under fixed and flexible exchange rate regimes for a broad sample of countries in a Panel VAR and let the responses vary with foreign currency debt and import structure. We find that flexible exchange rates do not insulate output better from external shocks if the country imports mainly low pass-through goods and foreign indebtedness is high.

Keywords: Exchange rate regimes; Balance sheet effects; Pass-through; Interacted panel VAR; External shocks (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F33 F34 F41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (107)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Limits of Floating Exchange Rates: the Role of Foreign Currency Debt and Import Structure (2011)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:deveco:v:101:y:2013:i:c:p:179-194

DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2012.10.007

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