한국 제조기업의 환위험관리 성과

Since the 1980s, studies on the foreign exchange risk of Korean manufacturing firms have expanded to various issues, such as the definition of foreign exchange risk and foreign exchange exposure, estimation of exchange exposure, the characteristics of exchange exposure and also evaluation of the performance of exchange risk managements. Some studies document positive effects of firms exchange risk management activities. While other studies cast doubt on their effectiveness. Many previous studies examining the performance of firms’ exchange risk management report that firms need to do more in order to accurately deduce their optimal hedge ratios, thereby improving the effectiveness of their hedging activities. Properly forecasting a hedging ratio, however, is not an easy task for a manufacturing firm; in that, their primary expertise is in production and sale. Existing studies and the test results of this study support the notion that forecasting an optimal hedge ratio has less to do with a firm’s intention but more to do with the firm’s ability, which is not easy to improve over a short period. If a firm is not skilled enough to reduce their foreign exchange risk through its own exchange risk management activities, asking for assistance from experts outside the firm would be an effective way to cope with foreign exchange risks. Related authorities need to be more active in supporting firms’ foreign exchange exposure management.