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Derivatives and Hedging

In: Business and Management

Submitted By bhorn7
Words 6066
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Derivatives and Hedging

Over recent years, the volatility in the financial markets has increased due to substantial changes domestically and internationally. This has given rise to increased financial price risks faced by both domestic and multi-national companies. Financial Derivatives are widely used by corporations to adjust to exposure to currency risk, interest rate risks, commodity price risks, and security holdings risk. Largely, companies are currently exposed to risks caused by unexpected movements in exchange rates and interest rates. Companies with a growing global presence are especially exposed to a wide range of financial risks, in particular foreign exchange risks and interest rate risk. Although, financial risks are the center of business operations of financial service firms, but they also impact the risk exposure of non-financial corporations. The management and supervision of these risks has become vital for the existence of companies in today’s unpredictable financial markets.
The major financial risks that most firms are exposed to are interest rate risk, currency rate risk, commodity price risk, and security holdings risk. Interest rate risk is a very common type of risk, and result from a discrepancy in the sensitivity of a firms assets and liabilities to interest rate movements. On the other hand, currency risk exposure is virtually encountered by all firms, even if their exposure is not from a transaction or a translation risk. Many firms are also likely to face competitive risk due to foreign companies using weak home currencies to their advantage (Triantis).
In 1944, the original global financial order was established and the Bretton Wood system was created. The system created an international basis for exchanging one currency for another and also led to the creation of the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank

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