We study exchange rate and equity price dynamics, in general equilibrium, in the presence of news shocks about future productivity and monetary policy. We identify a condition under which these asset prices become more volatile without affecting the volatility of the underlying processes - - a positive correlation between news and current shocks. This condition also explains why persistent underlying processes generate volatile asset prices. In addition, we show that the correlation between exchange rate and equity returns depends critically on the currency denomination of the equity return and the monetary policy reaction to productivity shocks. The model we set up does well at matching second moments of exchange rate and equity returns for major floating currencies.

This paper investigates linkages between stock markets in seven industrialized countries since 1974. Empirical evidence shows that both nominal and real stock prices (and returns) are strongly positively correlated across countries, and that nominal exchange rate changes do not have systematic effects on nominal stock prices. A two-country theoretical model is developed and an attempt is made to reconcile the empirical findings with the properties of this model. Independent evidence on the main sources of shocks is used to argue that the time-varying correlation in the data can be reconciled with the predictions of the theory.

This open access book addresses four standard business school subjects: microeconomics, macroeconomics, finance and information systems as they relate to trading, liquidity, and market structure. It provides a detailed examination of the impact of trading costs and other impediments of trading that the authors call rictions It also presents an interactive simulation model of equity market trading, TraderEx, that enables students to implement trading decisions in different market scenarios and structures. Addressing these topics shines a bright light on how a real-world financial market operates, and the simulation provides students with an experiential learning opportunity that is informative and fun. Each of the chapters is designed so that it can be used as a stand-alone module in an existing economics, finance, or information science course. Instructor resources such as discussion questions, Powerpoint slides and TraderEx exercises are available online.

This paper analyzes the dynamics of the real exchange rate and the price of equity for a small open economy using an optimizing model in which the process of capital accumulation entails adjustment costs. The analysis demonstrates that along an adjustment path toward long-run equilibrium, appreciation of the real exchange rate will accompany a decline in the market price of equity, whereas depreciation of the real exchange rate will accompany a rise in the price of equity. This relationship results from the requirement that non-traded inputs are used in the investment process. In the short-run, though, the effects on these variables depend critically on whether disturbances originate in the non-traded sector and on whether disturbances are perceived as temporary or permanent. The disturbances considered include changes in fiscal policies as well as changes in the world interest rate.

Empirically, output and asset returns are highly positively correlated across the United States and the other major industrialized countries. Standard business cycle models that assume flexible prices and wages, in the Real Business Cycle tradition, have great difficulties explaining this fact. This paper presents a dynamic-optimizing stochastic general equilibrium model of a two-country world with sticky nominal prices and wages and a flexible exchange rate. The structure here predicts positive international transmission of country-specific monetary policy and technology shocks, and it generates sizable cross-country correlations of output and of asset returns.

Large fundamental imbalances persist in the global economy, with potential exchange rate implications. This paper assesses whether exchange rate risk is priced across G-7 stock markets. Given the multitude of hedging instruments available, theory suggests that stock market investors should not be compensated for currency risk. However, data covering 33 industry portfolios across seven major stock markets suggest that not only is exchange rate risk priced in many markets, but that it is time-varying and sensitive to currency-specific shocks. With stock market investors typically exhibiting "home bias," this suggests that investors are using equity asset proxies to hedge the exchange rate risks to consumption.

This paper develops a two-country monetary DSGE model in which households choose a portfolio of home and foreign equities, and a forward position in foreign exchange. Some nominal goods prices are sticky. Trade in these assets achieves the same allocations as trade in a complete set of nominal state-contingent claims in our linearized model. When there is a high degree of price stickiness, we show that not much equity diversification is required to replicate the complete-markets equilibrium when agents are able to hedge foreign exchange risk sufficiently. Moreover, temporarily sticky nominal goods prices can have large effects on equity portfolios even when dividend processes are very persistent.