Foreign Exchange Management in Perfect Pieces Limited

Ltd is exposed to unlike throw attempt because it buys some of its production inputs from overseas and pays for them in unconnected capital has sales revenue in unlike currentness and competes with new(prenominal) manufacturers whose costs atomic number 18 denominated in unusual currency. The attach to imports from New Zealand, Japan, and the get together States. The companys come forwardside currency collectable are in the US Lars, NZ sawhorses, and Japanese yen. On the other(a) hand, the sales are more or lessly conducted in US dollars.Proceedings of the International Academy for Case Studies, Volume 10, tour 2 lassie Vegas, 2003 page 74 UP Lads moving picture environment consisted predominantly of the US dollars, the NZ dollar, and the Japanese yen. The foreign currency denominated sales were about 52 share of total sales 40 part in US dollars, and 12 percent in New Zealand dollars. The companys estimate of US dollar denominated payable was 36 percent of tot al sales 19 percent in US dollars, 12 percent in Japanese yen, and 5 percent in New Zealand dollars.In oecumenical UP Ltd gives customers an average credit outcome of between 3 to 6 months while the average credit outcome for all foreign currency denominated payable was 3 months. There was because a working capital gap as the collection of accounts receivable was longer than accounts payable. This situation was made worse by the fact that 40 per cent of the sales were denominated in US dollars and the US dollar was weakening against the Australian dollar. There was no divvy up taken out for the picture in US dollars because the pecuniary controller who acted as the companys pic private instructor thought the US dollar would shortly strengthen.Previously the US dollar was stronger than the Australian dollar and the company had gained from the US dollar denominated receivables. This experience had apparently, surprisingly, made the companys exposure coach consider it inapp ropriate to hedge the US dollar. The responsibility for identifying FEMME was in the hands of a fiscal accountant, with the assistance of the everyday manager. They hedged 50 per cent of the transactions for accounts payable in Japanese yen, and accounts receivable in New Zealand dollars. The financial accountant, in consultation with the general manager, bought forward contracts to cover the exposures. to the highest degree senior members of the company were concerned with manufacturing, promoting and grocery products rather than foreign flip exposure management. It was increasingly becoming difficult for the general manager to converge the financial accountant in order to manage fee because the general manager had to deal with other company duties. Previously, the general manager and the financial accountant met at least once a day to tax foreign switch market movements. The increasing inability to meet the general manager as frequently as before was making the financial accountant concerned.The financial accountant was anxious that he should be left over(p) alone to make decisions in matters as volatile as the foreign counterchange movements. The financial accountant felt that it was important to specify wrinkle descriptions in order to attach responsibility for the monitoring and compilation of foreign exchange information. Presumably, he hoped, that would lead to increasing resources in his section. He explained The both clerks in my section are responsible for helping me in alter management, pension management, as well as compiling foreign exchange exposure management forecasts. The finance section is very understaffed.The engineering and marketing functions were considered more important than financial management. The finance section was not completely understaffed, simply it also lacked properly qualified and go through personnel. The general manager thought that taking personal interest in treasury matters would alleviate the sense o f alienation that was perceived by the financial accountant. The lack of sagacity about the importance of FEMME among most of the company incumbents was discernible urine the interview. Most senior managers considered the primary tasks in the company to be the operational activities, viz. manufacturing, procurement, and selling.Lass Vegas, 2003 page 75 In terms of the organizational structure for exposure management, members of the company felt that centralization should be pursued subject to other considerations. One senior member of the company said The task of identifying and managing foreign exchange exposure is too onerous to be left in the hands of only one functional unit The financial accountant was a relatively Junior officer in the company and had robbers in trying to obtain information he needed to manage exposure.Since FEE is a result of activities that transcend one functional unit, and can be constrained by lack of resources such as trained and experienced staff, an d lack of appropriate equipment, this seemed to call for a company-wide policy from the top. The dialogue with most members of the company confirmed that there was no company-wide policy for FEMME. The next crest was to consider the extent of risk aversion. Most members of the company were keen that currency risk should be avoided as much as possible.Some of the members wondered why the company should not invoice customers in Australian dollars rather than foreign currencies. As to the general attitude to foreign exchange risk, some members said that they principally preferred average expected return with average risk to high return with high risk for any business involving foreign currency denominated receivables and/or payable. But if the company was considering projects which involved no foreign currency receivables or payable, then high expected return and high risk projects could be considered.One of the senior officers, however, pointed out that foreign exchange consideratio ns are but one factor. He was supported by another senior officer who said that sometimes the company may have other dominant strategic considerations to take into account, such as obtaining a share of the market even if that means at the expense of incurring foreign exchange loss. The companys foreign exchange rate forecasts were mainly obtained from banks and publications such as the monetary Review newspaper. The information on foreign exchange rates was prepared manually.The lack of computerizing was considered hindrance to better monitoring of exposure management. The crook of the gaiety with previous foreign exchange forecasts on hedging could only be commented on by the financial accountant and the general manager who carried out hedging of FEE. They both said that satisfaction with previous foreign exchange forecasts had minimum influence on the way they hedged. They were not confident with the forecasts they used. As they said Foreign exchange forecasts are Just foreca sts, they are neer the same as the actual exchange rates so we are usually less confident about them.The extent of hedging is a situational matter. UP Ltd was involved in foreign exchange transactions at least once a fortnight. It was evident that the intensity of social occasion in foreign exchange transactions did not have any influence on the hedging behavior. In spite of the fact that the US dollar denominated receivables were left exposed, Proceedings of the International Academy for Case Studies, Volume 10, Number 2 page 76 most members felt that the extent of involvement in foreign currency denominated business should be accompanied by more hedging activity.