The objective of this thesis is to study the operation of exchange rate regimes in the context of possible regime switches. An intuitive survey of the regime switching literature is given in Chapter 1, and three independent essays are presented in Chapters 2, 3, and 4. Using the theory of regulated Brownian motion, Chapter 2 derives the nonlinear relationship between the nominal exchange rate and its fundamentals during the transition period from the current free-float to a specified target zone (TZ), triggered at an announced state-dependent switch. It is shown that the derived nonlinear relationship is in general different from the relationship corresponding to a return to a fixed exchange rate regime. This is due to a "reflecting effect", the mirror image of the well known "honeymoon effect" of a target zone. and a "bandwidth effect". Also derived is a locus of "benchmark cases" demarcating the factors that lead to an immediate appreciation or depreciation of the domestic currency at the announcement of the future TZ. The target zone model developed in Chapter 3 incorporates the possibility of a future change in the trend in the fundamentals of the exchange rate as policy reaction to specific events (e.g., impending speculative attacks and nominal anchor debates). The market has subjective expectations about this possible trend revision, which can affect the exchange rate level even if the change in trend is not implemented. These expectations are treated, first, as entirely exogenous and, second, as state-varying. In both cases various correlation patterns between the exchange rate and interest rate differentials are possible. This result is consistent with the observed behaviour of the exchange rate and interest rate differentials within the European Monetary System. Chapter 4 studies an announced (state-dependent) regime shift from a free-floating to a permanently fixed exchange rate regime and introduces specific welfare considerations. The welfare issues introduced here try to explain why a specific exchange rate target level would be chosen instead of another one, if a return to a fixed exchange rate were on the public policy agenda and a given range for its pegged value had already been proposed. While this model does not provide a theory of choice between free-float and fixed rate regimes, it proposes a criterion to choose between fixed exchange rate regimes, taking into account the transition period from the free-float to the implementation of the fixed regime.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uottawa.ca/oai:ruor.uottawa.ca:10393/10244 |
| Date | January 1995 |
| Creators | Georges, Patrick. |
| Contributors | Plourde, Andre, |
| Publisher | University of Ottawa (Canada) |
| Source Sets | Université d’Ottawa |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 253 p. |
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