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Exchange rate changes and net positions of speculators in the futures market

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Author Info
Thomas Klitgaard
Laura Weir

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Abstract

Traders, strategists, and other participants in the currency markets continuously seek to understand and interpret short-term exchange rate movements. One data set frequently used in those efforts is a weekly report of net futures market positions held by speculators on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. In this article, the authors pursue a transaction-oriented line of research to track short-term exchange rate moves. They examine the data set for six currencies over a ten-year period and document a strong contemporaneous relationship between weekly changes in speculators' net positions and exchange rates. The authors find that knowing what speculators did over a given week gives one a 75 percent probability of correctly guessing an exchange rate's direction over that week. One explanation for this relationship is that these speculators-acting on their interpretation of public and private information-have some success anticipating how underlying demand will move exchange rates from their prevailing levels in the very short term.

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Publisher Info
Article provided by Federal Reserve Bank of New York in its journal Economic Policy Review.

Volume (Year): (2004)
Issue (Month): May ()
Pages: 17-28
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Handle: RePEc:fip:fednep:y:2004:i:may:p:17-28:n:v.10no.1

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Keywords: Foreign exchange rates ; Speculation ; Futures;

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Mark P. Taylor & Ronald MacDonald, 1991. "Exchange Rate Economics: A Survey," IMF Working Papers 91/62, International Monetary Fund.
  2. Clarida, Richard H. & Sarno, Lucio & Taylor, Mark P. & Valente, Giorgio, 2003. "The out-of-sample success of term structure models as exchange rate predictors: a step beyond," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 61-83, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Carol Osler, 2000. "Support for resistance: technical analysis and intraday exchange rates," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, issue Jul, pages 53-68. [Downloadable!]
  4. Martin D. D. Evans & Richard K. Lyons, 2002. "Order Flow and Exchange Rate Dynamics," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 110(1), pages 170-180, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  5. Andersen, Torben G. & Bollerslev, Tim & Diebold, Francis X. & Vega, Clara, 2002. "Micro Effects of Macro Announcements: Real-Time Price Discovery in Foreign Exchange," Working Papers 02-16, Duke University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
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  6. Robert P. Flood & Mark P. Taylor, 1996. "Exchange Rate Economics: What's Wrong with the Conventional Macro Approach?," NBER Chapters, in: The Microstructure of Foreign Exchange Markets, pages 261-302 National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!]
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Patricio Jaramillo & Jorge Selaive, 2006. "Speculative Activity and Copper Price," Working Papers Central Bank of Chile 384, Central Bank of Chile. [Downloadable!]
  2. Esteban Jadresic & Jorge Selaive, 2005. "Is The FX Derivatives Market Effective and Efficient in Reducing Currency Risk?," Working Papers Central Bank of Chile 325, Central Bank of Chile. [Downloadable!]
  3. Joshua V. Rosenberg & Leah G. Traub, 2006. "Price discovery in the foreign currency futures and spot market," Staff Reports 262, Federal Reserve Bank of New York. [Downloadable!]
  4. Mende, Alexander & Menkhoff, Lukas, 2006. "Profits and Speculation in Intra-Day Foreign Exchange Trading," Diskussionspapiere der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Hannover dp-339, Universität Hannover, Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät. [Downloadable!]
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  5. Joseph E. Gagnon & Alain P. Chaboud, 2007. "What can the data tell us about carry trades in Japanese yen?," International Finance Discussion Papers 899, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.). [Downloadable!]
  6. Jonathan Kearns & Phil Manners, 2004. "The Profitability of Speculators in Currency Futures Markets," RBA Research Discussion Papers rdp2004-07, Reserve Bank of Australia. [Downloadable!]
  7. Markus K. Brunnermeier & Stefan Nagel & Lasse H. Pedersen, 2008. "Carry Trades and Currency Crashes," NBER Working Papers 14473, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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