Government Purchases and the Real Exchange Rate

Robert Kollmann ()

No 7427, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: Recent empirical research documents that an exogenous rise in government purchases in a given country triggers a persistent depreciation of its real exchange rate - which raises an important puzzle, as standard macro models predict an appreciation of the real exchange rate. This paper presents a simple model with limited international risk sharing that can account for the empirical real exchange rate response. When faced with a country-specific rise in government purchases, local households experience a negative wealth effect; they thus work harder, and domestic output increases. Under balanced trade (financial autarky) this supply-side effect is so strong that the terms of trade worsen, and the real exchange rate depreciates. In a bonds-only economy, an increase in government purchases triggers a real exchange rate depreciation, if the rise in government purchases is sufficiently persistent and/or labor supply is highly elastic.

Keywords: Government purchases; Limited international risk sharing; Real exchange rate (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E62 F36 F41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cba, nep-ifn, nep-mac and nep-opm
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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Journal Article: Government Purchases and the Real Exchange Rate (2010)
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