How does foreign currency hedging work?
A foreign currency exposure is typically created when a company imports, exports or establishes an offshore physical presence. Due to potential valuation change from one currency to another, the result is currency risk. This risk will require active management or risk transfer. Whichever occurs, a currency hedge program should be investigated. Different companies will have a different hedging profile. Hedging is the tool to address currency risk. What are the different types of foreign currency hedging vehicles? There are three basic vehicles, although there are variations upon these three. The first type is a spot transaction, which is the immediate buying or selling of one currency for another. Using the market price today, settlement usually takes place within two business days. A company that only transacts using spot trades is typically accepting the most risk. The second vehicle is a forward contract. The price is locked in immediately, but settles on a date in the future. Monies
