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Are banks market timers or market makers? Explaining foreign exchange trading profits

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Author Info
John Ammer
Allan D. Brunner

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Abstract

We analyze the foreign exchange trading earnings of large U.S commercial banks over the past several years. In particular, we use several approaches to try to determine to what extent these profits can be attributed either to position-taking by banks or to the provision of intermediation services to bank customers. The results can be summarized as follows. First, banks appear to generate a substantial portion of their foreign exchange earnings from making markets in conventional spot and forward foreign exchange contracts. In addition, some indirect evidence supports anecdotal reports that intermediation in volatility-related products (e.g., options contracts) has been a significantly profitable activity. Finally, on average, positions in currencies do not appear to contribute to profits. Tests applied to monthly and daily data on banks' portfolio positions suggest that banks cannot accurately forecast changes in exchange rates, and that these currency positions account for only a small fraction (if any) of the banks' foreign exchange earnings.

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Paper provided by Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.) in its series International Finance Discussion Papers with number 484.

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Date of creation: 1994
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Handle: RePEc:fip:fedgif:484

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Keywords: Bank profits ; Foreign exchange;

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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. Bessembinder, Hendrik, 1994. "Bid-ask spreads in the interbank foreign exchange markets," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 317-348, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Frankel, Jeffrey A & Froot, Kenneth A, 1987. "Using Survey Data to Test Standard Propositions Regarding Exchange Rate Expectations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 77(1), pages 133-53, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Jeffrey A. Frankel & Kenneth A. Froot, 1987. "Using Survey Data to Test Some Standard Propositions Regarding Exchange Rate Expectations," NBER Working Papers 1672, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Grinblatt, Mark & Titman, Sheridan, 1992. " The Persistence of Mutual Fund Performance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 47(5), pages 1977-84, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  1. 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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  2. Adrian E. Tschoegl, . "The Key to Risk Management: Management," Center for Financial Institutions Working Papers 99-42, Wharton School Center for Financial Institutions, University of Pennsylvania. [Downloadable!]
  3. Agnes Benassy-Quere & Sophie Larribeau & Ronald MacDonald, 1999. "Models of Exchange Rate Expectations : Heterogeneous Evidence From Panel Data," Working Papers 1999-03, CEPII research center. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Sandra L. Chamberlain & John S. Howe & Helen Popper, 1996. "The Exchange Rate Exposure of U.S. and Japanese Banking Institutions," Center for Financial Institutions Working Papers 96-55, Wharton School Center for Financial Institutions, University of Pennsylvania. [Downloadable!]
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