Abstract The purchasing power parity puzzle, exchange rate disconnection to macroeconomic fundamentals and pricing to market are central issues of international macroeconomics. Recent research has suggested that these issues can be presented by nonlinear behaviour. In this dissertation, we examine and explain the nonlinearities in the form of regime switching behaviour in real exchange rate series, exchange rate and macroeconomic fundamentals relation and exchange rate pass-through into consumer and import prices. Overall, we find evidence that nonlinearities are important in analysing empirical exchange rate models. The dissertation consists of four self-contained empirical studies. In chapter 2 we examine whether the Markov switching models and exponential smooth transition autoregressive models can give any additional insights into real exchange rate behaviour for several OECD countries. The results show that there are long swings in the real exchange rate series, which can be characterize as a depreciation and an appreciation regime. These regimes are very persistent, although the processes are eventually mean reverting. We estimate a multivariate smooth transition autoregressive model for the euro/dollar exchange rate in chapter 3. The significant point of our analysis is the possibility that a nonlinear specification for the exchange rate series might reveal aspects of the exchange rate dynamics that cannot be picked up by linear models. We find that the euro/dollar exchange rate may display random walk or near random walk behaviour within a certain range but the ability of the exchange rate to wander without any bound is limited by long-term government bond interest rate differentials. In chapter 4 we examine nonlinear relationships between macroeconomic fundamentals and exchange rate for G-7 countries. We estimate a smooth transition error correction model that allows for parameter variation in the error correction form and interest rate differentials. The nonlinearity is determined by the inflation rate differentials between countries. We find significant error correction terms in monetary models. Our findings suggest the importance of nonlinear dynamics for examining deviations from the long-run equilibrium. We examine whether the degree of exchange rate pass-through is dependent on importing country inflation rate in chapter 5. Our model shows that import prices respond differently to exchange rate changes when we are in a high inflation regime compared to a low inflation regime. We also present empirical evidence by estimating pass-through elasticises for several OECD countries. We find that consumer prices are not very sensitive to exchange rate changes. For aggregate import prices, we find partial or full exchange rate pass-throughs. The tested nonlinear regime specific models proved appropriate for testing exchange rate dynamics for several currency pairs. Furthermore, we were able to present that macroeconomic fundamentals are important predictors of exchange rates.

Exchange rate economics has achieved substantial development in the past few decades. Despite extensive research, a large number of unresolved problems remain in the exchange rate debate. This dissertation studied three puzzling issues aiming to improve our understanding of exchange rate behavior. Chapter Two used advanced econometric techniques to model and forecast exchange rate dynamics. Chapter Three and Chapter Four studied issues related to exchange rates using the theory of New Open Economy Macroeconomics. Chapter Two empirically examined the short-run forecastability of nominal exchange rates. It analyzed important empirical regularities in daily exchange rates. Through a series of hypothesis tests, a best-fitting fractionally integrated GARCH model with skewed student-t error distribution was identified. The forecasting performance of the model was compared with that of a random walk model. Results supported the contention that nominal exchange rates seem to be unpredictable over the short run in the sense that the best-fitting model cannot beat the random walk model in forecasting exchange rate movements. Chapter Three assessed the ability of dynamic general-equilibrium sticky-price monetary models to generate volatile foreign exchange risk premia. It developed a tractable two-country model where agents face a cash-in-advance constraint and set prices to the local market; the exogenous money supply process exhibits time-varying volatility. The model yielded approximate closed form solutions for risk premia and real exchange rates. Numerical results provided quantitative evidence that volatile risk premia can endogenously arise in a new open economy macroeconomic model. Thus, the model had potential to rationalize the Uncovered Interest Parity Puzzle. Chapter Four sought to resolve the consumption-real exchange rate anomaly, which refers to the inability of most international macro models to generate negative cross-correlations between real exchange rates and relative consumption across two countries as observed in the data. While maintaining the assumption of complete asset markets, this chapter introduced endogenously segmented asset markets into a dynamic sticky-price monetary model. Simulation results showed that such a model could replicate the stylized fact that real exchange rates tend to move in an opposite direction with respect to relative consumption.

De acordo com um ramo da literatura de comércio internacional, aumento expressivo nos preços de recursos naturais pode causar forte crescimento na receita de exportação desses bens, que causaria apreciação da taxa real de câmbio e perda de competitividade das exportações e da produção de bens manufaturados. Em casos extremos, haveria encolhimento desse setor, efeito esse denominado desindustrialização. Esse conjunto de efeitos é comumente denominado doença holandesa. A apreciação da taxa de câmbio no Brasil, experimentada a partir de 2003, gerou debate entre economistas, acadêmicos ou não, a respeito da possível ocorrência de sintomas da doença holandesa no Brasil. A maior parte desses trabalhos e opiniões se amparou em observações dos dados para tomar posição a favor ou contra a ocorrência do fenômeno, sem aparente consenso. Este trabalho busca testar a hipótese do país ter apresentado sintomas da doença holandesa no período de 1999 a 2008 e contribuir com a literatura através do emprego de técnicas econométricas tradicionalmente observadas em trabalhos sobre o tema, abordagem essa distinta e inédita para o caso brasileiro. A estimação de relações de cointegração (VECM) mostrou ligação positiva entre preços de commodities e a taxa real de câmbio no Brasil, principalmente a partir de 2003, porém não corroborou a relação negativa entre os mesmos e exportações e produção de bens manufaturados que seria necessária na ocorrência da doença holandesa. O emprego da equação de gravitação para analisar a ligação entre esses preços e as exportações de bens manufaturados em um painel de 172 países tampouco encontrou indícios da ocorrência desse fenômeno. Concluiu-se, portanto, que entre 1999 e 2008 não há evidências indicativas de que o Brasil tenha apresentado os sintomas da doença holandesa. / According to a branch of the literature on international trade, a boom in the price of natural resources could lead to a surge in revenues with the exports of such goods, which would appreciate the real exchange rate and cause a loss of competitiveness in exports and production of manufactured goods. In extreme cases, the manufacturing sector could shrink, thus amounting to a phenomenon known as deindustrialization. The whole of those effects is commonly referred to as Dutch Disease. The appreciation of the exchange rate in Brazil, experimented from 2003 onwards, generated a debate among economists, both in and out of the academy, concerning the possibility of the symptoms of the Dutch Disease being observed in Brazil. The majority of such works and opinions relied upon the observation of economic data in order to come to a conclusion either in favor or against the phenomenon, without clear consensus. This work aims to test the hypothesis of the country having presented the symptoms of the Dutch Disease between 1999 and 2008 and to contribute with the literature through the employment of econometric techniques commonly observed in works dealing on the theme, a distinct and novel approach for the Brazilian case. The estimation of cointegration relations (VECM) showed a positive connection between commodity prices and the real exchange rate in Brazil, mainly from 2003 onwards, but failed to find the negative relationship between those prices and exports or production of manufactured goods that would be required in the occurrence of the Dutch Disease. The employment of the gravity equation in order to analyze the connection between the price of commodities and exports using a panel of 172 countries also failed to present evidence of the phenomenon. It was concluded that between 1999 and 2008 there is no indication that Brazil presented the symptoms of the Dutch Disease.

De acordo com um ramo da literatura de comércio internacional, aumento expressivo nos preços de recursos naturais pode causar forte crescimento na receita de exportação desses bens, que causaria apreciação da taxa real de câmbio e perda de competitividade das exportações e da produção de bens manufaturados. Em casos extremos, haveria encolhimento desse setor, efeito esse denominado desindustrialização. Esse conjunto de efeitos é comumente denominado doença holandesa. A apreciação da taxa de câmbio no Brasil, experimentada a partir de 2003, gerou debate entre economistas, acadêmicos ou não, a respeito da possível ocorrência de sintomas da doença holandesa no Brasil. A maior parte desses trabalhos e opiniões se amparou em observações dos dados para tomar posição a favor ou contra a ocorrência do fenômeno, sem aparente consenso. Este trabalho busca testar a hipótese do país ter apresentado sintomas da doença holandesa no período de 1999 a 2008 e contribuir com a literatura através do emprego de técnicas econométricas tradicionalmente observadas em trabalhos sobre o tema, abordagem essa distinta e inédita para o caso brasileiro. A estimação de relações de cointegração (VECM) mostrou ligação positiva entre preços de commodities e a taxa real de câmbio no Brasil, principalmente a partir de 2003, porém não corroborou a relação negativa entre os mesmos e exportações e produção de bens manufaturados que seria necessária na ocorrência da doença holandesa. O emprego da equação de gravitação para analisar a ligação entre esses preços e as exportações de bens manufaturados em um painel de 172 países tampouco encontrou indícios da ocorrência desse fenômeno. Concluiu-se, portanto, que entre 1999 e 2008 não há evidências indicativas de que o Brasil tenha apresentado os sintomas da doença holandesa. / According to a branch of the literature on international trade, a boom in the price of natural resources could lead to a surge in revenues with the exports of such goods, which would appreciate the real exchange rate and cause a loss of competitiveness in exports and production of manufactured goods. In extreme cases, the manufacturing sector could shrink, thus amounting to a phenomenon known as deindustrialization. The whole of those effects is commonly referred to as Dutch Disease. The appreciation of the exchange rate in Brazil, experimented from 2003 onwards, generated a debate among economists, both in and out of the academy, concerning the possibility of the symptoms of the Dutch Disease being observed in Brazil. The majority of such works and opinions relied upon the observation of economic data in order to come to a conclusion either in favor or against the phenomenon, without clear consensus. This work aims to test the hypothesis of the country having presented the symptoms of the Dutch Disease between 1999 and 2008 and to contribute with the literature through the employment of econometric techniques commonly observed in works dealing on the theme, a distinct and novel approach for the Brazilian case. The estimation of cointegration relations (VECM) showed a positive connection between commodity prices and the real exchange rate in Brazil, mainly from 2003 onwards, but failed to find the negative relationship between those prices and exports or production of manufactured goods that would be required in the occurrence of the Dutch Disease. The employment of the gravity equation in order to analyze the connection between the price of commodities and exports using a panel of 172 countries also failed to present evidence of the phenomenon. It was concluded that between 1999 and 2008 there is no indication that Brazil presented the symptoms of the Dutch Disease.