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92
CHAPTER 7
The International Monetary
System and the Balance of Payments
Chapter Objectives
LECTURE OUTLINE
OPENING CASE: Will the Stars Shine on Astra Again?A Global Currency War
PT Astra is one of the oldest and largest conglomerates in Asia, at one point having
employed 125,000 people. After borrowing in dollars from foreign banks, Astra's fortunes
plummeted with the collapse of the Indonesian rupiah. A new president installed in
1998, Rini Soewandi, did much to turn the company around until her ouster in 2000.
Now, with deals struck with the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) and the
International Monetary Fund (IMF), Indonesia and Astra may again have reason to be
optimistic.This section explores the issue of the global utilization of exchange rates to
create international currency wars in an attempt to gain a domestic competitive
advantage.
Key Points
• Astra was a domestically oriented firmThe currency wars erupted in the aftermath of
the Global Recession of 2008-09.
• Even so, it was not impervious to international competitive issues, such as changes
in the value of the Indonesian rupiahExchange rates have become the weapon of
choice.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
Chapter Seven explores the international monetary system and the balance of
payments. The chapter traces the history of the international monetary system
beginning with the gold standard and ending with the current system of a managed float.
It then goes on to examine the different accounts and balances in the balance of
payments.
• The international monetary system establishes the rules by which countries value
and exchange their currencies. It also provides a mechanism for correcting
imbalances between a country’s international payments and its receipts.
• The accounting system that governs the international monetary system is the
balance of payments (BOP). The BOP records international transactions and
supplies vital information about the health of a national economy and likely changes
in its fiscal and monetary policies.
Teaching Note:
Students may find it helpful to use a timeline when discussing the
different exchange-rate systems that have taken place over the last
century.
• The gold standard, under which countries agreed to buy and sell their paper
currencies in exchange for gold on the request of any individual or firm, was the
international monetary system in place in the nineteenth century.
• The gold standard had the effect of creating a fixed exchange rate system because
each country tied or pegged the value of its currency to gold. An exchange rate is
the price of one currency in terms of a second currency. The par value of a
currency is its official price in terms of gold.
• For nearly a century (from 1821 until 1918), the most important currency in
international business was the British pound sterling; thus, the international monetary
system was frequently referred to as the sterling-based gold standard during this
time.
• As countries suffered through the economic chaos of World War I, the sterling-based
gold standard came unraveled; however, it was readopted in the 1920s.
• In spite of its resuscitation, the gold standard ended in 1931 when Britain, under
pressure to honor guarantees made under the system, allowed its currency to float
(the pound’s value was determined by the forces of supply and demand).
• While some countries, primarily those in the British Commonwealth, pegged their
currencies to the pound after the gold standard was abandoned, others linked their
currencies to the U.S. dollar or the French franc. In addition, many countries
engaged in a beggar-thy-neighbor policy, in which nations deliberately devalued
their currencies in the hope of making their goods cheaper in the world marketplace.
Figure 7.1 should be discussed here.
EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES
Frog Ranching in Peru
This section describes the World Bank Group’s attempt to help poor Peruvian
campesinos (subsistence farmers) improve their livelihood. It financed a new
Peruvian company, Forests and Frogs, which will raise and export poison-dart frogs.
Poor peasants are being trained to gather and nurture the amphibians’ eggs.
Forests and Frogs believes it can double the peasants’ income once the project is
underway.
• The International Monetary Fund. The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) primary
responsibility is to oversee the functioning of the international monetary system.
• To join the IMF, countries must pay a deposit, called a quota. Quotas are important
because they determine a country’s voting power within the organization, serve as
part of a nation’s official reserves, and determine a country’s borrowing power from
the IMF.
• A country is allowed to borrow up to 25 percent of its quota from the IMF. Additional
borrowings require that countries agree to IMF conditionality.
• A Dollar-Based Gold Standard. Under the international monetary system
established at Bretton Woods, all countries agreed to peg the value of their
currencies to gold (the dollar was pegged to gold at a value of $35 per ounce).
Thus, the agreement was a fixed exchange rate system. In addition, the United
States agreed to redeem the dollar for gold at the request of foreign central banks.
In this way, the dollar played a key role in the Bretton Woods system.
• The Bretton Woods system provided a generally stable environment for international
business because under the agreement, each country agreed to maintain the value
of its currency within ±1 percent of its par value.
• An additional feature of the Bretton Woods agreement was an adjustable peg
mechanism that allowed a country to alter the value of its currency in extraordinary
circumstances. The text provides an example of the circumstances that prompted
Great Britain to readjust the pound’s peg value in 1967.
• The reliance on the U.S. dollar eventually led to the downfall of the Bretton Woods
system. Since the supply of gold did not expand in the short term, the dollar became
the source of additional liquidity to finance expanding international trade. However,
as foreign dollar holdings began to increase, doubt about the ability of the United
States to live up to its Bretton Woods obligation began to rise.
• The Tiffin paradox arose because foreign banks needed to increase their holdings
of dollars to finance expansion of international trade, but the more dollars they
owned, the less faith they had in the ability of the United States to redeem the dollars
for gold.
• The IMF attempted to alleviate the situation by creating an additional source of
international liquidity, the special drawing right (SDR). The SDR, a weighted
average of the market value of five major currencies, is used by IMF members to
settle official transactions at the IMF.
• The SDR did not have the desired effect of reducing the glut of dollars held by
foreigners, and by 1971, it became clear that the United States did not have enough
gold to meet the demand of those who wanted to exchange dollars for gold. Nixon
officially ended the system, and currencies began to float against each other.
• The fixed exchange rate system was restored at the Smithsonian Conference (see
Table 7.1) in late 1971. Under the new agreement, the dollar was devalued to $38
per ounce of gold, and the par value of strong currencies was revalued upward. In
addition, the band of fluctuation within which currencies were allowed to fluctuate
was widened to ± 2.25 percent.
• Under the Jamaica Agreement, established in 1976, each country was free to adopt Formatted: Font: Bold
whatever exchange rate system best met its requirements. Some countries (i.e., the
United States) chose a floating exchange rate, while others opted for a fixed
exchange rate system by pegging their currencies to another. Crawling pegs allow
the peg to change gradually over time.
• The European Monetary System (EMS) was established by EU members in 1979
to manage currency relationships among themselves. Most EMS members
participate in the exchange rate mechanism, in which participants maintain fixed
exchange rates among their currencies (within a ±2.25 percent band) and a floating
rate against the U.S. dollar and other currencies.
• The EMS members also created a new index currency, the European Currency
Unit, which is a weighted “basket” of the currencies of the EU members that is used
for accounting purposes within the EU.
• While the EMS has been helpful in curbing inflation and in promoting intra-EU
investment, it has also been adjusted 39at times because of differences in the
monetary policies of EU members.
• The current international monetary system is based on flexible exchange rates,
although some countries (i.e., the EU) have chosen to maintain fixed exchange-rate
systems.
• Other Postwar Conferences. The world’s central banks meet periodically to iron out
policy conflicts among themselves. One such meeting, the Plaza Accord (held in
1985), resulted in an agreement to let the dollar’s value fall. Table 7.1 can again be
used here.
• A second meeting, the Louvre Accord, was called in 1987 to stabilize the dollar.
Discuss Figure 7.3 here, showing the changing value of the dollar against the
Japanese yen, Euro and the Deutsche Mark, 1960-2010.
• Because a depreciation in a firm’s home currency makes it easier for the firm to
export and defends it from the threat of imports, exchange rates are very important to
firms.
• The International Debt Crisis. The international debt crisis grew out of events that
occurred shortly after the flexible exchange rate system of 1973 began, when Arab
nations quadrupled the price of oil. Banks recycled the petrodollar in the form of
loans to countries that were damaged by the rise in oil prices. However, many
countries borrowed more than they could repay.
• Various efforts were made to resolve the crisis. The 1985 Baker Plan stressed the
importance of debt rescheduling, tight IMF-imposed controls over domestic fiscal and
monetary policies, and continued lending to debtor countries in hope that economic
growth would allow them to repay their creditors. The plan had limited success.
• The 1989 Brady Plan focused on the need to reduce the debts of the troubled
countries by writing off parts of debt or providing countries with funds to buy back
their loan notes at below face value.
• The international monetary system suffered a crisis in July 1997, when investors
began to distrust the abilities of Thai borrowers to repay their debts. Thailand was
forced to unpeg its currency from a dollar-denominated basket of currencies,
resulting in a rapid deterioration in the currency’s value. The crisis quickly spread to
neighboring countries, setting off a major international currency crisis.
The BOP accounting system can be divided into four major accounts: the current
account; the capital account; the official reserves account; and the errors and
omissions account.
Current Account
• The current account records exports and imports of merchandise and services,
investment income, and gifts. Table 7.3 summarizes the debit and credit entries
for transactions involving the current account.
• To Germany, a sale of a Mercedes-Benz automobile to a doctor in Marseilles is a
merchandise export, and the purchase by a German resident of Dom Perignon
champagne from France is a merchandise import. The difference between a
country’s exports and imports of goods is called the balance on merchandise
trade. The United States has a merchandise trade deficit because it has been
importing more than it exports, while Japan has a merchandise trade surplus
because it has been exporting more than it imports.
• The sale of a service (i.e., consulting services) to a resident of another country is
a service export, while the purchase of a service by a resident of another
country is a service import. The term trade in invisibles is also used to
describe trade in services. The difference between a country’s export of services
and its import of services is called the balance on services trade.
• Income (i.e., interest and dividends) German residents earn from their foreign
investment is viewed as an export of the services of capital by Germany.
Income earned by foreigners from their investments in Germany is known as an
import of the services of capital by Germany.
• Unilateral transfers are gifts between residents of one country and another
country.
• Current account balance measures the net outflow or inflow resulting from
merchandise trade, service trade, investment income, and unilateral transfers.
Capital Account
• The official reserves account records holdings of the official reserves held by a
national government including gold, convertible currencies (currencies that are
freely exchangeable in world currency markets), SDRs, and reserve positions at
the IMF.
• The errors and omissions account is used to make the BOP balance in
accordance with the following equation: Current Account + Capital Account +
Errors and Omissions + Official Reserves = 0.
• A large portion of the errors and omissions account is probably due to
underreporting of capital account transactions. It is becoming more and more
difficult to keep track of legal capital transactions as they become increasingly
sophisticated and grow in volume. Other errors and omissions are deliberate
actions and are frequently illegal. Flight capital, for example, is money sent
abroad by foreign residents seeking a safe haven for their assets, hidden from
the sticky fingers of their home governments.
• Other errors and omissions are related to the current account, particularly
merchandise exports and trade in services.
• U.S. merchandise exports were $1,288561.72 billion in 20102 (see Figure 7.4 for a
detailed breakdown). Automobiles and auto parts were the largest component of
U.S. merchandise exports. Table 7.6 and Figure 7.4 give a more detailed
breakdown of imports and exports by industry. Discuss the tables here.
• U.S. merchandise imports totaled $1,934.62,302.7 billion in 20102. The leading
import was automobiles and auto parts. See Figure 7.4b here.
• U.S. exports of services were $548.9649.3 billion in 20102, with travel and tourism
being the largest portion ($134.418.4 billion).
• The U.S. tends to import more goods from its major trading partners than it exports
to them; however, it tends to export more services to them than it imports from them.
Discuss Figure 7.5 here.
• The capital account (use Table 7.6 here) shows that in 20102, U.S. FDI outflows
were $351.488.3 billion, while FDI inflows were $236.2166.4 billion. New U.S. long-
term international portfolio investments were $147.270.5 billion in 20102, while new
foreign long-term portfolio investments in the United States were $813.5707.7 billion.
The capital account balance was $255.9450.8 billion in 20102, as foreigners bought
more U.S. assets than U.S. residents bought foreign assets.
• The official reserves account transactions were 1.84.5 billion, and the errors and
omissions account was 216.8had a discrepancy of $5.9 billion.
• When people talk about a balance of payments surplus or deficit, they are talking
about a subset of BOP accounts. For example, a merchandise trade surplus occurs
when a country exports more than it imports. Other balances that are often
mentioned include the balance on services, the balance on goods and services, the
current account balance, and the basic balance (the sum of the current account and
net long-term capital investment).
• The official settlements balance reflects changes in a country’s official reserves; it
essentially records the net impact of the central bank’s interventions in the foreign
exchange market in support of the local currency.
• Which BOP concept to use depends on the issue confronting the international
businessperson or policy maker. There is no single measure of a country’s global
economic performance. The balance on goods and services reflects the combined
international competitiveness of a country’s manufacturing and service sectors. The
current account balance shows the combined performance of the manufacturing and
service sectors and also reflects the generosity of the country’s residents, as well as
income generated by past investments. The basic balance combines current
account transactions with long-term capital investments. The official settlements
balance is a record of supply and demand for a country’s currency.
• Figure 7.6 shows the U.S. Balance of Payments for the past decade using figures
for various sub-accounts.
CHAPTER REVIEW
1. 7-1 What is the function of the international monetary system? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The international monetary system establishes the rules by which countries value and
exchange their currencies. In addition, the system provides a mechanism to correct
imbalances that may exist between a country’s international payments and its receipts. (LO
7.1; AACSB: Communication Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the
international monetary system and global capital market)
2. 7-2 Why is the gold standard a type of fixed exchange rate system? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The gold standard is a type of fixed exchange rate system because under the system, each
country pegged the value of its currency to gold. Currencies are then exchanged using the
stated amount of gold. The text provides an example of the process using the U.S. dollar
and the British pound. (LO 7.2; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the
roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
3. 7-3 What were the key accomplishments of the Bretton Woods conferencewas the initial Formatted: No bullets or numbering
goal of the World Bank?
4. 7-4 Why was the IFC established by the World Bank? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The International Finance Corporation was created in 1956 to promote the development of
the private sector in developing countries. To that end, the IFC (in collaboration with private
investors) serves as an investment banker as it provides debt and equity capital for
commercial activities that show promise. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning
Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital
market)
5. 7-5 Why are quotas important to IMF members? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
Quotas (the deposits countries pay to join the organization) are important to IMF members
for several reasons. First, a country’s quota determines its voting power within the IMF.
Second, a country’s quota serves as part of its official reserves. Third, quotas determine a
country’s borrowing power from the IMF. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning
Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital
market)
6. 7-6 Why did the Bretton Woods system collapse in 1971? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
A key part of the Bretton Woods system was the agreement by the United States to
exchange its currency for gold. During the 1950s and 1960s, foreigners happily held onto
dollars. However, as their holdings increased, they began to question the ability of the
United States to redeem their dollars for gold. After an attempt by the IMF to increase
liquidity in the system using special drawing rights, the Bretton Woods system collapsed in
1971 amid fears that the United States did not have enough gold on hand to meet the
demands of those who wanted to exchange their dollars for gold. (LO 7.3 and 7.4; AACSB:
Dynamics of the global economy; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the
international monetary system and global capital market)
7. 7-7 Describe the differences between a fixed exchange rate system and a flexible Formatted: No bullets or numbering
exchange rate system.
Under a fixed exchange rate system, the price of a given currency does not change relative
to other currencies. Under a flexible exchange rate system, currencies fluctuate according
to supply and demand. (LO 7.4; AACSB: Communication Skills; Learning Outcome:
Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
8. 7-8 List the four major accounts of the BOP accounting system and their components. Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The four major accounts of the BOP accounting system are the current account, the capital
account, the official reserves account, and the errors and omissions account. The capital
account summarizes merchandise exports and imports, service exports and imports,
investment income, and gifts for a given country. The capital account provides a record of a
country’s capital transactions including purchases and sales of assets. The official reserves
account provides a summary of a country’s official reserves including gold, convertible
currencies, SDRs, and reserve positions at the IMF. Finally, the errors and reserves
account provides a mechanism for ensuring that the BOP balances. (LO 7.5; AACSB:
Communication Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
9. 7-9 What factors cause measurement errors in the BOP accounts? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
Various factors contribute to measurement errors in the BOP accounts. It is believed that a
large portion of the account is a result of the underreporting of capital account transactions.
A portion of this underreporting is due in part to the growing volume of legal short-term
money flowing between countries. Another portion of the account is due to the illegal
activities of drug smuggling, money laundering, and the evasion of government-imposed
currency and investment controls. Errors in the current account also affect the errors
and omissions account. The main problems reducing the accuracy of current account
transactions typically involve merchandise exports and trade in services. (LO 7.5 and 7.6;
AACSB: Communication Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
10. 7-10 Identify the different types of balance of payments surpluses and deficits. Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The merchandise trade balance, which summarizes a country’s trade position in goods, is
the most commonly referred to balance. Other balances include the balance on services,
which records a country’s trade in services, the balance on goods and services which
combines the balance on services and the merchandise trade balance, the current account
balance which summarizes the activities in the current account (see Review Question 8), the
basic balance which sums the current account balance and net long-term capital, and the
official settlements balance which reflects changes in a country’s official reserves. (LO 7.6;
AACSB: Communication Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
1. 7-11 What parallels exist between the role of the British pound in the nineteenth-century Formatted: No bullets or numbering
international monetary system and that of the U.S.US dollar since 1945?
In the nineteenth century, the British pound was the most important currency in international
business. The pound gained this status because the United Kingdom emerged at the end of
the Napoleonic Wars as the dominant economic and military power in Europe. The British
pound (or gold) was accepted by most companies in the settlement of transactions.
However, after World War I, when the Great Depression affected economies worldwide,
Britain was unable to meet its pledges under the gold standard, and the monetary system
ended shortly thereafter. The U.S. dollar, like the British pound, emerged as the dominant
currency at the conclusion of World War II, when the United States held the position of a
military and economic superpower. Individuals and companies were happy to settle their
transactions with dollars, much as they were with the pound in earlier times. Under the new
international monetary system established at Bretton Woods, the U.S. pledged to exchange
its currency for gold at the rate of $35 per ounce. However, when the country found itself
unable to meet its pledge, it ended the system in 1971. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Communication
Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and
global capital market)
2. 7-12 Did the key role that the dollar played in the Bretton Woods system benefit or hurt Formatted: No bullets or numbering
the United States?
It can be argued that the key role the dollar played in the Bretton Woods system benefited
the United States because it helped the country to gain the status of a force to be reckoned
with. Moreover, the system gave the United States veto power on important decisions, and
a portion of each country’s deposits with the IMF were kept in the United States. On the
other hand, it could be argued that the large depreciation in the value of the dollar that
began at the conclusion of the system and continued into the 1980s helped to create an
unstable domestic environment (although U.S. exporters benefited from the decline in the
dollar’s value). (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles
of the international monetary system and global capital market)
3. 7-13 Under what conditions might a country devalue its currency today? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
A country might devalue its currency in an effort to help the international competitiveness of
its exporters. A devalued dollar, for example, has the effect of making U.S. exports cheaper
in foreign markets and foreign imports more expensive to U.S. consumers. U.S. automakers
enjoyed a less competitive domestic environment, for example, in the early 1990s when the
U.S. dollar was very weak compared to the Japanese yen. This created a situation in which
Japanese auto exports were not price competitive with domestically produced vehicles and
eventually allowed U.S. producers to recapture a share of the U.S. market. (LO 7.4; AACSB:
Dynamics of the global economy; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the
international monetary system and global capital market)
4. 7-14 Are there any circumstances under which a country might want to increase its Formatted: No bullets or numbering
currency’s value?
Countries may try to increase the value of their currencies in certain circumstances. For
example, major trading partners met at the Louvre Accord in an effort to halt the decline of
the dollar, which had plummeted almost 46 percent against the Deutsche mark and 41
percent against the yen in just two years. Countries were worried that any further
devaluation in the dollar would disrupt world trade. However, for the most part, countries
will be reluctant to revalue their currencies because a stronger currency makes exports less
competitive and imports less expensive. The combination of these effects creates a trade
deficit. (LO 7.4; AACSB: Dynamics of the global economy; Learning Outcome: Summarize
the roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
5. 7-15 Can international businesses operate more easily in a fixed exchange rate system Formatted: No bullets or numbering
or in a flexible exchange rate system?
Under a fixed exchange rate system, countries peg the value of their currencies to gold.
Under a flexible exchange rate system, supply and demand determine the value of a
country’s currency. Many people would argue that because of the stability and predictability
of exchange rates under a fixed system, such a system would be preferred by international
businesses. However, others would argue that a flexible exchange rate system would be
preferable to international businesses because their competitiveness would not be affected
by inflation, as it would be offset by a depreciation in exchange rates. (LO 7.4; AACSB:
Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international monetary
system and global capital market)
6. 7-16 What connections exist between the current account and the capital account? Formatted: No bullets or numbering
The current account and the capital account have an inverse relationship as a result of the
BOP double-entry accounting system. Thus, if the current account is running a deficit, the
capital account must run a surplus to offset the deficit and bring the BOP into balance. In
the 1990s, the United States had experienced a current account deficit and a capital
account surplus, while Japan had experienced just the opposite situation. (LO 7.5; AACSB:
Communication Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
How will the following transactions be recorded in the U.S. BOP accounts?
1. 7-17 A n AmericanUS entrepreneur seeking to sell souvenirs at the 2012 summer Formatted: No bullets or numbering
Olympics in LondoLondonn pays British Airways, a U.K. carrier, $1,500 for a Los Angeles –
London round-trip ticket.
The credit entry in this transaction affects the short-term portfolio account in the amount of
$1,500. The debit entry in this transaction is a service import of $1,500. (LO 7.5 and 7.6;
AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
2. 7-18 The AmericanA US entrepreneur instead pays United Airlines (an American airline) Formatted: No bullets or numbering
$1,500 for a Los Angeles – London round-trip ticket.
This transaction will not affect the U.S. BOP because the airline is an American carrier being
used by an American national. (LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning
Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital
market)
3. 7-19 Ford Motor Company (U.S.) pays $2.5 billion for all the common stock of the Formatted: No bullets or numbering
Jaguar Motor Co. (U.K.).
Ford is buying a long-term asset (the Jaguar Motor Co.) for purposes of control, and the
U.K. is buying a short-term asset called “an increase of claims on foreigners or a decrease
of foreign claims on the U.K." The U.S. BOP will reflect a debit of $2.5 billion in the foreign
direct investment account, and a credit of $2.5 billion in the short-term portfolio account.
(LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the
international monetary system and global capital market)
4. 7-20 The U.S. government gives Rwanda $500 million worth of food to feed starving Formatted: No bullets or numbering
refugees.
The U.S. BOP would reflect a debit in the unilateral transfer account for the amount of $500
million since the money is a gift, and the short-term portfolio account would show a credit for
$500 million. (LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the
roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
Other Applications
Students can take this exercise to the next level by determining how each of the
transactions listed above affects the current account, the capital account, and the overall
balance of payments for each country in question.
CLOSING CASE
The closing case provides two divergent views as to how the U.S.US BOP should be
interpreted. One perspective looks at the last decade’s BOP favorably, while the other
perspective does not.
Key Points:
• Over the last decade, the U.S.US BOP has reflected a large annual deficit in the
current account, a large annual surplus in the capital account, and relatively small
changes in the official reserves account.
• This BOP can be interpreted in two ways. First, that U.S.US firms are uncompetitive
in foreign markets, and foreigners are taking over the country by buying up valuable
U.S. assets. Second, that the United States is attracting foreign investment through
foreign country current account surpluses.
• Those who favor the first argument believe that the United States must reduce its
BOP deficit by following policies to make U.S.US firms more competitive in foreign
markets and by following policies to keep imported goods out.
• People who believe the second argument is true feel that the country should strive to
do anything possible to become more attractive to foreign investors.
• It is important for companies to understand BOP statistics because they are the key
to the type of international trade policy the United States will pursue.
Case Questions
1. 7-21 What is more important to the U.S.US economy – exports or foreign capital Formatted: Indent: Left: 0.5", No bullets or numbering
inflows?
The answer to this question depends on whether one takes the view that the last
decade’s BOP indicates that the United States is becoming uncompetitive in foreign
markets, or the view that the BOP indicates that the United States is in a good
position relative to foreign rivals. Those who support the former viewpoint would
probably argue that exports are more important to the U.S.US economy, while those
who feel that the United States is attracting investment because its prospects are
very attractive are likely to believe that foreign capital inflows are more important.
(LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB: Dynamics of the global economy; Learning Outcome:
Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
2. 7-22 What is the connection between the U.S.US current account deficit and Formatted: Indent: Left: 0.5", No bullets or numbering
capital account surplus?
The connection between the current account deficit and the capital account surplus
is that one cannot exist without the other; the accounts have an inverse relationship.
In a sense then, the means by which the United States is able to run a deficit in its
current account (by importing more than it exports) is to finance the deficit with its
capital account. (LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB: Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome:
Summarize the roles of the international monetary system and global capital market)
3. 7-23 Which of the following groups is likely to endorse the “sky is falling” view of Formatted: Indent: Left: 0.5", No bullets or numbering
the U.S.US BOP?
• Import-threatened firms such as textile producers
• Textile workers
• A cash-starved California biotechnology company
• Merrill Lynch
• Boeing Aircraft, one of the country’s largest exporters
• Consumers
Import-threatened firms such as textile producers, and textile workers are likely to
endorse the “sky is falling” perspective of the United States. A cash-starved biotech
firm is likely to view foreign investment favorably, as is Merrill Lynch. Consumers
probably do not endorse the “sky is falling” perspective because all those cheap
imports help the consumer’s dollar go further. Finally, export-oriented Boeing Aircraft
is not likely to endorse a “sky is falling” perspective. (LO 7.5 and 7.6; AACSB:
Analytical Skills; Learning Outcome: Summarize the roles of the international
monetary system and global capital market)
I did not go to that dinner. I dined alone with Miss Grier in the city, but at
about ten we drove out to Tivoli to sit with the company. As we went I outlined
to her discreetly the relations that now existed between two of her best friends:
Oh, how stupid he is, she cried. How cruel! What a lot he has forgotten. Don't
you see that the whole thing rests, not on the abstract question as to whether
her prayers may be answered, but on the question as to whether ONE prayer
may be answered? Her prayer for France ... Doesn't he believe such things
are real to other people?
He thinks that a little doubt will be good for her. He describes her as the
woman who has never suffered.
He is in his dotage. I am so angry I am ill.
At this moment our car drew aside to let pass another hurrying by towards
Rome. This was Mlle de Morfontaine's great ugly travelling car and the
Cardinal was in it.
There he is now, cried Miss Grier. They must have broken, up early.
Something's happened, I said.