INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL

ENVIRONMENT
MULTINATIONAL CORPORATION (MNC)

FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKETS

Dividend remittance and financing

Exporting & importing Investing financing

Product markets subsidiaries International

financial Market
The importance of multinational corporations and the
globalization of production are now well recognize.
Multinational Corporations (MNC) have become central
actors of the world economy and in linking foreign
Direct investment, trade, technology and Finance, they
are a driving force of economic growth. Since the world
is reduced to an electronic village and Global Finance
has become a reality therefore in a contemporary
global financial corporation capital is one of the most
fungible assets to cross national boundaries. The
determinants of the way in which transnational
corporation acquire, organize and manage those
assets is of critical importance, not only to the success
of those corporations, but also to the development and
industrial restructuring of nation states. The task of an
international Financial Manager is to make the best
possible tactical decision that the market has to offer
on liabilities within the strategic funding constraints.
 International Financial Management
With the opening up of the markets, overseas
involvement of Indian firms is increasing and this
trend is expected to continue. Many projects are
being set up abroad, more and more finances
are being sought from international capital
markets and export efforts are being intensified
to earn foreign exchange. To grapple with these
problems one needs an under standing of
International financial management.
Basic decisions to be taken by the Finance
managers under international financial
management can be groped as :
1. Investment decision
2. Financing decision and
3. Asset management decisions

Scope of International Financial Management

1. Current Asset management
2. Managing forex risks
3. International taxation
4. International capital under taking
5. Financing decision
6. International accounting
7. Financing foreign trade
1. Current Asset Management constitutes of
:
a. Cash Management
b. Accounts receivable management
c. Inventory Management
a. Cash Management aims at
- minimizing cash balance
b. Accounts receivable management
- aims at management of creditors and
collection of amount receivable.
c. Inventory Management
- Refers to the management of supplies,
raw material, works in progress, finished
goods.
2. Managing Foreign exchange risk
Multinational companies face three types of
risks.
a. Transaction exposure : occurs when a
company faces a huge loss / profit in a single
shot due to forex fluctuations.
b. Translation exposes : Occurred when
statement of account of host country figures are
converted into home country currency and
converted into home country currency and profits
many turn into losses because of sudden
changes in the currency rates.
c. Economic exposure : Occurs because of
adverse economic environment in host country.
The company may face the risk of losing the
forecasted earning / profits.
 Techniques to over come the risks :
Forwards and derivatives – futures, options
swaps.
3. International taxation –
Has a significant effect on
- making foreign investments
- Managing exchange risks
- Planning capital structure
- Managing flow of funds
The problems here are –
- Double taxation and transfer pricing
4. International capital budgeting
The steps involved in international capital budgeting
are.
- Estimating future cash in flows
- Discounting future in flows into present value
- Evaluating the profitability and selection of best
alternative.
5. Financing decision
Involved decision regarding the
- Capital structure of the host county subsidiary.
- Sources of financing the subsidiary
(debt / equity)
6. International accounting
Firms engaged in international business face two
specific accounting problem.
- Accounting transactions in foreign currencies.
- Translating the reported operations of foreign
subsidiaries into currency of the parent firm for
consolidating financial statement.
7. Financing foreign trade
It foreign affiliate requires financing through long
term funds and short term funds. The key issues
with respect to financing foreign operations are –
- Parent company’s stake in equity
- Optimal capital structure
- Sources of funds
 ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL
MANAGER
The Chief tasks of the International Financial Manager are
summarized as under :-
1. Forecasting the Financial Environment – prices, Inflation rates,
Interest rates and exchange rates.
2. Management of Assets – from cash management to
international cash budgeting, at home and abroad, in domestic
and foreign currencies.
3. Management of liabilities – borrowing relationship and
decisions, in domestic and foreign currencies, markets, short
term and long term.
4. Exchange risk management – measuring the effect of
exchange rate changes on balance sheets, income, and cash
flows, and managing these risks.
5. Performance evaluation and control – accounting for outsiders,
tax authorities and for management and doing so across
countries and currencies without distortion.
Sounds like Herculean agenda ? Yes,
 Economic Frame work of international
financial Management
Disequilibrium conditions
Relative excess Money supplies
1
Relative inflation rate
2
3
Rate of 4
Change of Relative interest
Exchange rate rates
6
5
Forward Premium
 IFM – FINANCE FUNCTION
Finance Function of a firm can be divided into two sub functions
a) Control and Accounting b) Treasury
Treasurer Controller

Financial Cash Mgmt External Financial Mgmt

Planning Reporting Accounting
Analysis

Tax planning Budget

Funds
Funds Management Planning
acquisition
acquisition control

Budget Management Accounts

Risk
Planning information receivable
Management
control system
 EXHIBIT – 1
THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL SYSTEM
Domestic Financial System International Financial System Domestic Financial
System

Country A Unique Elements Country B

Markets
Markets Markets
Foreign exchange market
Money market Money market
Eurocurrency market
Bond market Bond market
Eurobond market
Equity market Equity market
Forward and future markets
for foreign exchange

Participant Participant
Participants
Individual Individual
Domestic participants from country A
Corporations Corporations
Domestic participants from country B
Governments Governments
International public financial or
Intermediaries Intermediaries
Welfare organizations
Brokers Brokers
 EXCHANGE RATE SYSTEMS

• The exchange rate is formally defined as the

value of one currency in terms of another. There
are different ways in which the exchange rates
can be determined. Exchange rates may be
fixed, floating, or with limited flexibility. Different
system have different methods of correcting the
disequilibrium between international payments
and receipts. Different mechanisms will be
discussed in subsequent sections.
 Fixed Exchange rate System
As the name suggests, under a fixed (or pegged)
exchange rate system the value of a currency in terms of
another is fixed. These rates are determined by
governments or the Central Banks of the respective
countries. The fixed exchange rates results from countries
pegging their currencies to either some common
commodity or to some particular currency. There is
generally some provision for correction of these fixed
rates in case of a fundamental disequilibrium. Examples
of this system are the gold standard and the Bretton
Woods System. The particular variation of the fixed rate
system are :
Fixed (or pegged) exchange rate systems include:
- Currency board system
- Target zone arrangement (also called currency block)
- Monetary union.
 CURRENCY BOARD SYSTEM
• Under a currency board system, a country fixes the rate of its
domestic currency in terms of a foreign currency, and its exchange
rate in terms of other currencies depends on the exchange rates
between the other currencies and the currency to which the domestic
currency is pegged. Due to pegging, the monetary policies and
economic variables of the country of the reference currency are
reflected in the domestic economy. If the fundamentals of the
domestic economy show a wide disparity with that of the reference
country’s, there is a pressure on the exchange rate to change
accordingly. This may result in a run on the currency, thus forcing the
authorities to either change, or altogether abandon the peg. To
prevent such an event, the monetary policies are kept in lime with that
of the reference country by the central monetary authority, called the
currency board. It commits to convert its domestic currency on
demand into the foreign anchor currency to an unlimited extent, at the
fixed exchange rate. The currency board maintains reserves of the
anchor currency up to 100% or more of the domestic currency in
circulation. These reserves are generally held in the form of low-risk,
interest bearing assets denominated in the anchor currency. An
internationally accepted, relatively stable currency is generally
selected as the anchor currency.
 TARGET ZONE ARRANGEMENT
• A group of countries sometimes gets together,
and agrees to maintain the exchange rates
between their currencies within a certain band
around fixed central exchange rates. This system
is called a target zone arrangement. Convergence
of economic policies of the participating countries
is a prerequisite for the sustenance of this
system. An example of this system is the
European Monetary System under which twelve
countries came together in 1979, and attempted
to maintain the exchange rates of their currencies
with other member countries’ currencies within a
fixed band around the central exchange rate.
 MONETARY UNION
• Monetary union is the next logical step of target zone
arrangement. Under this system, a group of
countries agree to use a common currency, instead
of their individual currencies. This eliminates the
variability of exchange rates and the attendant
inefficiencies completely. The economic variables of
the member countries have to be quite proximate for
the system to be viable. An independent, Common
Central Bank is set-up, which has the sole authority
to issue currency and to determine the monetary
policy of the group as a whole. The member
countries lose the power to use economic variables
like interest rates to adjust their economies to the
phase of economic cycle being experienced by
them. As a result, the region as a whole experiences
the same inflation rate. This is the most extreme
form of management of exchange rates.
 Floating Exchange Rate System

Under this system, the exchange rates between currencies are

variable. These rates are determined by the demand and supply for
the currencies in the international market. These, in turn, depend
on the flow of money between the countries, which may either
result due to international trade in goods or services, or due to
purely financial flows. Hence, in case of a deficit or surplus in the
Balance of Payments (difference between the inflation rates,
interest rates and economic growth of the countries are some of
the factors which result in such imbalances), the exchange rates
get automatically adjusted and this leads to a correction in the
imbalance.
Floating exchange rates can be of two types : Free float and
Managed float.
Floating exchange rates can be of two types : Free flat and Managed
float.
 FREE FLOAT
The exchange rate is said to be freely floating when its
movements are totally determined by the market. There
is no intervention at all either by the government or by
the Central Bank. The current and expected future
demand and supply of currencies change on a day – to –
day, and even a moment – to – moment basis ; as the
market receives, analyzes and reacts to economic,
political and social news. This, in turn, changes the
equilibrium in the currency market and the exchange rate
is determined accordingly. As the reactions to events do
not follow a set pattern, the resultant movements in the
exchange rates turn out to be quite random. Hence, a lot
of volatility is observed in the markets following a free
float system. This system is also known as the clean
float.
 MANAGED FLOAT
This management of exchange rates can take three forms :
i. The Central Bank may occasionally enter the market in order
to smoothen the transition from one rate to another, while
allowing the market to follow its own trend. The aim may be to
avoid fluctuations which may not be in accordance with the
underlying economic fundamentals, and speculative attacks on
the currency.
ii. Some events are liable to have only a temporary effect on the
markets. In the second variation, intervention may take place
to prevent these short and medium-term effects, while letting
the markets find their own equilibrium rates in the long-term, in
accordance with the fundamentals.
iii. In the third variation, though officially the exchange rate may
be floating, in reality the Central Bank may intervene regularly
in the currency market, thus unofficially keeping it fixed.