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Afixed exchange rate, often called apegged exchange rate, is a type ofexchange rate regime in which acurrency's value is fixed or pegged by amonetary authority against the value of another currency, abasket of other currencies, or another measure of value, such asgold orsilver.
There are benefits and risks to using a fixed exchange rate system. A fixed exchange rate is typically used to stabilize the exchange rate of a currency by directly fixing its value in a predetermined ratio to a different, more stable, or more internationally prevalent currency (or currencies) to which the currency is pegged. In doing so, the exchange rate between the currency and its peg does not change based on market conditions, unlike in afloating (flexible) exchange regime. This makes trade and investments between the two currency areas easier and more predictable and is especially useful for small economies that borrow primarily in foreign currency and in which external trade forms a large part of theirGDP.
A fixed exchange rate system can also be used to control the behavior of a currency, such as by limiting rates ofinflation. However, in doing so, the pegged currency is then controlled by its reference value. As such, when the reference value rises or falls, it then follows that the values of any currencies pegged to it will also rise and fall in relation to other currencies and commodities with which the pegged currency can be traded. In other words, a pegged currency is dependent on its reference value to dictate how its current worth is defined at any given time. In addition, according to theMundell–Fleming model, with perfectcapital mobility, a fixed exchange rate prevents a government from using domesticmonetary policy to achievemacroeconomic stability.
In a fixed exchange rate system, a country'scentral bank typically uses an open market mechanism and is committed at all times to buy and sell its currency at a fixed price in order to maintain its pegged ratio and, hence, the stable value of its currency in relation to the reference to which it is pegged. To maintain a desired exchange rate, the central bank, during a time of private sector net demand for the foreign currency, sells foreign currency from its reserves and buys back the domestic money. This creates an artificialdemand for the domestic money, which increases its exchange rate value. Conversely, in the case of an incipient appreciation of the domestic money, the central bank buys back the foreign money and thus adds domestic money into the market, thereby maintaining market equilibrium at the intended fixed value of the exchange rate.[1]
In the 21st century, the currencies associated with large economies typically do not fix (peg) their exchange rates to other currencies. The last large economy to use a fixed exchange rate system was thePeople's Republic of China, which, in July 2005, adopted a slightly more flexible exchange rate system, called amanaged exchange rate.[2] TheEuropean Exchange Rate Mechanism is also used on a temporary basis to establish a final conversion rate against theeuro from the local currencies of countries joining theEurozone.[3][4][5]
Timeline of the fixed exchange rate system:[6]
| 1880–1914 | Classical gold standard period |
| April 1925 | United Kingdom returns to gold standard |
| October 1929 | United States stock market crashes |
| September 1931 | United Kingdom abandons gold standard |
| July 1944 | Bretton Woods Conference |
| March 1947 | International Monetary Fund comes into being |
| August 1971 | United Statessuspends convertibility of dollar into gold – Bretton Woods system collapses |
| December 1971 | Smithsonian Agreement |
| March 1972 | European snake with 2.25% band of fluctuation allowed |
| March 1973 | Managed float regime comes into being |
| April 1978 | Jamaica Accords take effect |
| September 1985 | Plaza Accord |
| September 1992 | United Kingdom andItaly abandonEuropean Monetary System (EMS) |
| August 1993 | European Monetary System allows ±15% fluctuation in exchange rates |
The gold standard is a monetary system where a country's currency or paper money has a value directly linked to gold. With the gold standard, countries agreed to convert paper money into a fixed amount of gold
The Bretton Woods System is a set of unified rules and policies that provided the framework necessary to create fixed international currency exchange rates. Essentially, the agreement called for the newly created IMF to determine the fixed rate of exchange for currencies around the world
A current monetary system is a system by which a government provides money in a country's economy. Modern monetary systems usually consist of the national treasury, the mint, the central banks and commercial banks.
Typically, a government wanting to maintain a fixed exchange rate does so by either buying or selling its own currency on the open market.[7] This is one reason governments maintain reserves of foreign currencies.
If the exchange rate drifts too far above the fixed benchmark rate (it is stronger than required), the government sells its own currency (which increases supply) and buys foreign currency. This causes the price of the currency to decrease in value (Read: Classical Demand-Supply diagrams). Also, if they buy the currency it is pegged to, then the price of that currency will increase, causing the relative value of the currencies to approach what is intended.
If the exchange rate drifts too far below the desired rate, the government buys its own currency in the market by selling its reserves. This places greater demand on the market and causes the local currency to become stronger, hopefully back to its intended value. The reserves they sell may be the currency it is pegged to, in which case the value of that currency will fall.
Another, less used means of maintaining a fixed exchange rate is by simply making it illegal to trade currency at any other rate. This is difficult to enforce and often leads to ablack market in foreign currency. Nonetheless, some countries are highly successful at using this method due to government monopolies over all money conversion. This was the method employed by the Chinese government to maintain a currency peg or tightly banded float against the US dollar. China buys an average of one billion US dollars a day to maintain the currency peg.[8] Throughout the 1990s, China was highly successful at maintaining a currency peg using a government monopoly over all currency conversion between the yuan and other currencies.[9][10][11]
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The gold standard is the pegging of money to a certain amount of gold.
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Currency board arrangements are the most widespread means of fixed exchange rates. Currency boards are considered hard pegs as they allow central banks to cope with shocks to money demand without running out of reserves.[12] CBAs have been operational in many nations including:
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Monetary co-operation is the mechanism in which two or moremonetary policies orexchange rates are linked, and can happen at regional or international level.[15] The monetary co-operation does not necessarily need to be a voluntary arrangement between two countries, as it is also possible for a country to link itscurrency to another countries currency without theconsent of the other country. Various forms of monetary co-operations exist, which range from fixed parity systems tomonetary unions. Also, numerous institutions have been established to enforce monetary co-operation and to stabiliseexchange rates, including theEuropean Monetary Cooperation Fund (EMCF) in 1973[16] and theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF)[17][unreliable source]
Monetary co-operation is closely related toeconomic integration, and are often considered to be reinforcing processes.[18] However, economic integration is an economic arrangement between different regions, marked by the reduction or elimination oftrade barriers and the coordination of monetary andfiscal policies,[19] whereas monetary co-operation is focussed on currency linkages. Amonetary union is considered to be the crowning step of a process of monetary co-operation andeconomic integration.[18] In the form of monetary co-operation where two or more countries engage in a mutually beneficial exchange,capital among the countries involved is free to move, in contrast tocapital controls.[18] Monetary co-operation is considered to promote balancedeconomic growth and monetary stability,[20] but can also work counter-effectively if the member countries have (strongly) differing levels ofeconomic development.[18] Especially European and Asian countries have a history of monetary and exchange rate co-operation,[21] however the European monetary co-operation and economic integration eventually resulted in aEuropean monetary union.
In 1973, the currencies of theEuropean Economic Community countries, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxemburg and the Netherlands, participated in an arrangement calledthe Snake. This arrangement is categorized as exchange rate co-operation. During the next 6 years, this agreement allowed the currencies of the participating countries tofluctuate within a band of plus or minus 2¼% around pre-announcedcentral rates. Later, in 1979, theEuropean Monetary System (EMS) was founded, with the participating countries in‘the Snake’ being founding members. The EMS evolves over the next decade and even results into a trulyfixed exchange rate at the start of the 1990s.[18] Around this time, in 1990, theEU introduced theEconomic and Monetary Union (EMU), as an umbrella term for the group of policies aimed at converging theeconomies of member states of theEuropean Union over three phases[22]
In 1963, the Thai government established the Exchange Equalization Fund (EEF) with the purpose of playing a role in stabilizing exchange rate movements. It linked to theU.S. dollar by fixing the amount of gram ofgold perbaht as well as the baht per U.S. dollar. Over the course of the next 15 years, the Thai government decided todepreciate the baht in terms of gold three times, yet maintain theparity of the baht against the U.S. dollar. Due to the introduction of a new generalized floating exchange rate system by theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1978 that gave a smaller role to gold in the international monetary system, this fixed parity system as a monetary co-operation policy was terminated. The Thai government amended its monetary policies to be more in line with the new IMF policy.[18]
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One main criticism of a fixed exchange rate is that flexible exchange rates serve to adjust thebalance of trade.[23] When a trade deficit occurs under a floating exchange rate, there will be increased demand for the foreign (rather than domestic) currency which will push up the price of the foreign currency in terms of the domestic currency. That in turn makes the price of foreign goods less attractive to the domestic market and thus pushes down the trade deficit. Under fixed exchange rates, this automatic rebalancing does not occur.
Another major disadvantage of a fixed exchange-rate regime is the possibility of the central bank running out of foreign exchange reserves when trying to maintain the peg in the face of demand for foreign reserves exceeding their supply. This is called acurrency crisis or balance of payments crisis, and when it happens the central bank mustdevalue the currency. When there is the prospect of this happening, private-sector agents will try to protect themselves by decreasing their holdings of the domestic currency and increasing their holdings of the foreign currency, which has the effect of increasing the likelihood that the forced devaluation will occur. A forced devaluation will change the exchange rate by more than the day-by-day exchange rate fluctuations under a flexible exchange rate system.
Moreover, a government, when having a fixed rather than dynamic exchange rate, cannot use monetary or fiscal policies with a free hand. For instance, by using reflationary tools to set the economy growing faster (by decreasing taxes and injecting more money in the market), the government risks running into a trade deficit. This might occur as the purchasing power of a common household increases along with inflation, thus making imports relatively cheaper.[citation needed]
Additionally, the stubbornness of a government in defending a fixed exchange rate when in atrade deficit will force it to use deflationary measures (increased taxation and reduced availability of money), which can lead tounemployment. Finally, other countries with a fixed exchange rate can also retaliate in response to a certain country using the currency of theirs in defending their exchange rate.[citation needed]
The belief that thefixed exchange rate regime brings with it stability is only partly true, sincespeculative attacks tend to target currencies with fixed exchange rate regimes, and in fact, the stability of the economic system is maintained mainly throughcapital control. A fixed exchange rate regime should be viewed as a tool in capital control.[neutrality isdisputed][citation needed]
