Exploring how the release of new economic data affects asset prices in the stock, bond, and foreign exchange markets, the authors find that only a few announcements - the nonfarm payroll numbers, the GDP advance release, and a private sector manufacturing report - generate price responses that...

With the U.S. trade deficit at high levels, many look to a dollar depreciation to curb the U.S. appetite for foreign goods by pushing up the cost of imports. Yet three factors -- the use of the dollar in invoicing U.S. trade, the market share concerns of exporters, and sizable U.S. distribution...

Economic announcements are an important source of information, containing news that spills over internationally across markets, affecting yields. An analysis of the U.S. and German sovereign bond markets finds that the largest moves in yields are associated with U.S. announcements on labor...

That central banks should hold foreign currency reserves is a key tenet of the post-Bretton Woods international financial order. But recent growth in the reserve balances of industrialized countries raises questions about what level and composition of reserves are “right” for these...

The institutional arrangements for trading and settling securities in Europe remain fragmented along national lines, making cross-border trading costly. Consolidation efforts are under way, however, and major market centers have now emerged in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Although...

That central banks should hold foreign currency reserves is a key tenet of the post-Bretton Woods international financial order. But recent growth in the reserve balances of industrialized countries raises questions about what level and composition of reserves are “right” for these...

Recently the U.S. dollar's preeminence as an international currency has been questioned. The emergence of the euro, changes in the dollar's value, and the financial market crisis have, in the view of many commentators, posed a significant challenge to the currency's long-standing position in...

Facing a shortage of U.S. dollars and a growing need to support their dollar-denominated assets during the financial crisis, international firms increasingly turned to the foreign exchange swap market and other secured funding sources. An analysis of the ensuing strains in the swap market shows...

U.S. manufacturing industries are becoming increasingly sensitive to changes in the international value of the dollar. A look at recent studies of exchange rate effects on industry performance suggests that the 1997-98 rise in the dollar may significantly reduce U.S. producers' profits and...

Policymakers continue to debate the merits of opening emerging market financial sectors to foreign ownership. A comparison of the 1995-2000 performance of foreign and domestic banks in select Latin American countries reveals that while foreign banks differed little from their domestic...