An efficient method is developed for pricing American options on stochastic volatility/jumpdiffusion processes under systematic jump and volatility risk. The parameters implicit in deutsche mark (DM) options of the model and various submodels are estimated over the period 1984 to 1991 via nonlinear generalized least squares, and are tested for consistency with $/DM futures prices and the implicit volatility sample path. The stochastic volatility submodel cannot explain the "volatility smile" evidence of implicit excess kurtosis, except under parameters implausible given the time series properties of implicit volatilities. Jump fears can explain the smile, and are consistent with one 8 percent DM appreciation "outlier" observed over the period 1984 to 1991. The central empirical issues in option pricing are what distributional hypotheses are consistent with observed option prices, and whether those distributional hypotheses are consistent with the properties of the un

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Jumps and Stochastic Volatility: Exchange Rate Processes Implicit in Deutsche Mark Options

Description Contents Resources Courses About the Authors
In the last few decades exchange rate economics has seen a number of developments, with substantial contributions to both the theory and empirics of exchange rate determination. Important developments in econometrics and the increasingly large availability of high-quality data have also been responsible for stimulating the large amount of empirical work on exchange rates in this period. Nonetheless, while our understanding of exchange rates has significantly improved, a number of challenges and open questions remain in the exchange rate debate, enhanced by events including the launch of the Euro and the large number of recent currency crises. This volume provides a selective coverage of the literature on exchange rates, focusing on developments from within the last fifteen years. Clear explanations of theories are offered, alongside an appraisal of the literature and suggestions for further research and analysis.

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The Economics of Exchange Rates

Regressions of multiple-period changes in the log exchange rate on the deviation of the log exchange rate from its 'fundamental value' display evidence that long-horizon changes in log nominal exchange rates contain an economically significant predictable component. To account for small-sample bias and size distortion in asymptotic tests, inference is drawn from bootstrap distributions generated under the null hypothesis that the log exchange rate is unpredictable. The bias-adjusted slope coefficients and R[superscript]2's increase with the forecast horizon, and the out-of-sample point predictions generally outperform the driftless random walk at the longer horizons. Copyright 1995 by American Economic Association.

Exchange rates and fundamentals: Evidence on long-horizon predictability

Historically, the fields of exchange-rate economics and microstructure finance have progressed independently of each other. Recent interaction, however, has given rise to a microstructure approach to exchange rates. This book focuses on the economics of financial information and how microstructure tools help to clarify the types of information most relevant to exchange rates. The microstructure approach views exchange rates from the perspective of the trading room, the place where exchange rates are actually determined. Emphasizing information economics over institutional issues, the approach departs from three unrealistic assumptions common to previous approaches: that all information relevant to exchange rates is publicly available, that all market participants are alike in their goals or in how they view information, and that how trading is organized is inconsequential for exchange rates. The book shows how exchange-rate behavior previously thought to be particularly puzzling can be explained using the microstructure approach. It contains a combination of theoretical and empirical work.

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The Microstructure Approach to Exchange Rates

Macroeconomic models of nominal exchange rates perform poorly. In sample, R2 statistics as high as 10 percent are rare. Out of sample, these models are typically out-forecast by a naive random walk. This paper presents a model of a new kind. Instead of relying exclusively on macroeconomic determinants, the model includes a determinant from the field of microstructure—order flow. Order flow is the proximate determinant of price in all microstructure models. This is a radically different approach to exchange rate determination. It is also strikingly successful in accounting for realized rates. Our model of daily exchange-rate changes produces R2 statistics above 50 percent. Out of sample, our model produces significantly better short-horizon forecasts than a random walk. For the DM/$ spot market as a whole, we find that $1 billion of net dollar purchases increases the DM price of a dollar by about 1 pfennig.

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Order Flow and Exchange Rate Dynamics

This paper investigates the possibility that the observed deviations of major bilateral exchange rates from values implied by market fundamentals are a consequence of rational asset market bubbles. When a new econometric methodology for detecting asset market bubbles is used, the joint hypothesis of no bubbles and stable autoregressive processes for relative money supplies and real incomes is rejected for the dollar/deutsche mark and dollar/pound ratesusing monthly data over the period 1973-82. Additional tests for coefficient stability and for lack of cointegration between exchange rates and market fundamentals suggest that the bubble findings must be interpreted with care.

Richard A. Meese

Papers

Testing for Bubbles in Exchange Markets: A Case of Sparkling Rates?