FI 322 International Financial Management
Hedging the Transaction Exposure
Tim Cook, owner of the Cook Exports Company, will be receiving about 10,000 British pounds about 1
month from now as payment for exports produced and sent by his firm. Tim is concerned about his
exposure because he believes that there are two possible scenarios: (1) the pound will depreciate by 3
percent over the next month or (2) the pound will appreciate by 2 percent over the next month. There is
a 70 percent chance that Scenario 1 will occur. There is a 30 percent chance that Scenario 2 will occur.
Tim notices that the prevailing spot rate of the pound is $1.65, and the 1-month forward rate is
about $1.645. Tim can purchase a put option over the counter from a securities firm that has exercise
(strike) price of $1.645, a premium of $.025, and an expiration date of 1 month from now.
1. Determine the amount of dollars received by the Cook Exports Company if the receivables to be
received in 1 month are not hedged under each of the two exchange rate scenarios.
2. Determine the amount of dollars received by the Cook Exports Company if a put option is used to
hedge receivables in 1 month under each of the two exchange rate scenarios.
3. Determine the amount of dollars received by the Cook Exports Company if a forward hedge is
used to hedge receivables in 1 month under each of the two exchange rate scenarios.
4. Summarize the results of dollars received based on an unhedged strategy, a put option strategy,
and a forward hedge strategy. Select the strategy that you prefer based on the information
provided.
Hedging the Economic Exposure
Tim Cook remains concerned about his exposure to exchange rate risk. Even if Tim hedges his
transactions from 1 month to another, he recognizes that a long-term trend of depreciation in the British
pound could have a severe impact on this firm. He believes that he must continue to focus on the British
market for selling his footballs. However he plans to consider various ways in which he can reduce his
economic exposure. At the current time, he obtains material from a local manufacturer and uses a
machine to produce the footballs, which are then exported. He still uses his garage as a place of
production and would like to continue using his garage to maintain low operating expenses.
1. How could Tim adjust his operations to reduce his economic exposure? What is a possible
disadvantage of such an adjustment?
2. Offer another solution to hedging the economic exposure in the long run as Tim’s business
grows. What are the disadvantages of this solution?