Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR

Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR
Author: International Monetary
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 62
Release: 2022-05-16
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

This paper provides the basis for the quinquennial review by the Executive Board of the method of valuation of the Special Drawing Right (SDR). The review covers the composition and weighting of the SDR currency basket, and the financial instruments used to determine the SDR interest rate. In the five-year period for this review (2017‒21), developments in key variables relevant for the SDR valuation suggest that there have been no major changes in the roles of currencies in the world economy. The countries and the currency union (euro area) whose currencies are currently included in the SDR basket remain the five largest exporters and their currencies continue to account for the majority of international financial transactions. Moreover, staff analysis finds that the COVID-19 pandemic and recent fintech developments have no systematic or material impact on the SDR valuation. The paper proposes to maintain the current composition of the SDR currency and interest rate baskets, as well as the method for determining the currency weights and currency amounts in the basket. In line with the Board-approved methodology, the paper proposes updated weights for the currencies in the SDR basket. These maintain the same ranking of the initial weights set in the 2015 review, with slightly higher weights for the U.S. dollar and the Chinese renminbi and, accordingly, somewhat lower weights for the British pound, the euro, and the Japanese yen. The paper also proposes to make explicit the treatment of data gaps in the SDR valuation framework. Findings from a survey of SDR department participants and prescribed holders are used to follow up on operational issues raised in earlier valuation reviews. The new SDR valuation and interest rate baskets are proposed to come into effect on August 1, 2022 for a period of five years.

Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR - Initial Considerations

Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR - Initial Considerations
Author: International Monetary Fund. Asia and Pacific Dept
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 65
Release: 2015-07-16
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1498344313

This paper lays out initial considerations for the quinquennial review of the method of valuation of the Special Drawing Right (SDR) currency basket. As in previous reviews, a key objective is to enhance the attractiveness of the SDR as an international reserve asset. In that context, the review will assess the currencies for SDR basket inclusion, currency weights, and the SDR interest rate basket. The paper takes as a starting point the conclusions of the last review in 2010 and the subsequent Board discussion of currency selection criteria in 2011. At the time of the last review, China met the gateway export criterion but the renminbi (RMB) was not included in the SDR basket as it was not judged to be freely usable, the second currency selection criterion. In light of the Board’s broad support in 2011 for the existing legal framework, and since China continues to meet the export criterion, this paper discusses building blocks relevant for a future determination on whether to include the RMB in the basket under the existing criteria.

Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR

Review of the Method of Valuation of the SDR
Author: International Monetary Fund
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 100
Release: 2015-11-13
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1498344011

This paper provides the basis for the quinquennial review of the method of valuation of the Special Drawing Right (SDR). The review considers the composition, size, and weighting of the SDR currency basket and the financial instruments used to determine the SDR interest rate. The analysis in this paper is guided by the informal discussion of Executive Directors in July on initial considerations for the review. In light of Directors’ preference, the two currency selection criteria for SDR inclusion are maintained. Since China continues to meet the export criterion, a key focus of this paper is on assessing whether the renminbi (RMB) could be determined to be a freely usable currency, which is the second criterion. The paper documents the rising international use and trading of the RMB since the 2010 SDR valuation review. A range of indicators suggests that use of the RMB in international transactions has risen substantially, albeit from a low base. The paper also finds that the RMB has become far more actively traded in foreign exchange markets, with sufficient depth to support operations of the size Fund members might undertake without an appreciable change in the exchange rate. Full Text also available in Chinese.

Review of The Method of Valuation of The SDR—Proposed Extension of The Valuation Of The SDR Basket and Modification of The Date Of Effect of A New Basket

Review of The Method of Valuation of The SDR—Proposed Extension of The Valuation Of The SDR Basket and Modification of The Date Of Effect of A New Basket
Author: International Monetary Fund. Finance Dept.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 7
Release: 2021-03-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1513574035

On March 5, 2021, the IMF’s Executive Board approved an extension of the current Special Drawing Right (SDR) valuation basket by ten months from September 30, 2021 to July 31, 2022. The IMF normally reviews the composition and valuation of the SDR basket every five years. The extension effectively resets the five-yearly cycle of SDR valuation reviews, with the next review to be completed by mid-2022 and the new basket becoming effective on August 1, 2022. The ten-month extension contributes to the Fund’s ongoing efforts to prioritize work during the COVID-19 crisis and allows for a more suitable effectiveness date of the new basket, which does not coincide with some major markets being closed. The approved extension, as well as effectiveness date of a new basket, is intended to facilitate the continued smooth functioning of SDR-related operations.

Staff Note for the G20 - The Role of the SDR - Initial Considerations

Staff Note for the G20 - The Role of the SDR - Initial Considerations
Author: International Monetary Fund
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 25
Release: 2016-07-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1498345441

Following the recent diagnostic of the international monetary system (IMS), the IMF will explore whether a broader role for the SDR could contribute to its smooth functioning. The economic rationale for or against broader use of the SDR will be examined, focusing in particular on identifying any gaps and market failures the SDR could help address in light of the increasingly multi-polar nature of the global economy and growing financial interconnectedness. This note sets out some initial considerations on this matter. The note sketches some key issues bearing on the role of the SDR in each of three concepts: (i) the official SDR, or “O-SDR”, the composite reserve asset issued and administered by the IMF; (ii) SDR-denominated financial market instruments, or “M-SDRs,” which could be both issued and held by any parties; and (iii) the SDR as a unit of account. M-SDRs reduce foreign exchange and interest rate risk relative to single-currency instruments, but there are some drawbacks and challenges. The basket nature of M-SDRs would allow the volatility of returns to be lower than for a similar singlecurrency instrument. However, the SDR only represents one of many possible sets of portfolio weights, and issuers or investors could use existing instruments to replicate their preferred weights at a relatively low cost. There are also challenges to market development, including settling and clearing of M-SDR transactions, dealing with potential basket redefinition, and fostering secondary market trading in order to generate liquidity and market depth. There are potential benefits to using the SDR as a unit of account, which have to be weighed against other considerations. Publishing economic statistics and financial statements in SDR terms could help users identify valuation changes. Statistical authorities would need to invest in communicating the rationale for any change in practices. While the official SDR under its current framework is not playing a significant role in the IMS, a re-examination of its role is expected to inform whether any specific reform options should be pursued. The evolution of the IMS has given rise to an active debate on how much concern is posed by high rates of reserve accumulation, global imbalances, and rising claims on reserve issuers, and on whether the O-SDR could contribute to addressing these issues.

Gaining Currency

Gaining Currency
Author: Eswar Prasad
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 345
Release: 2017
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0190631058

China's currency, the renminbi, has taken the world by storm. This book documents the renminbi's impressive rise to global prominence in a short period but also shows how much further it has to go before becoming a major international currency. The hype about its inevitable ascendance to global dominance is overblown.

Handbook on the International Political Economy of China

Handbook on the International Political Economy of China
Author: Ka Zeng
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 469
Release: 2019
Genre: China
ISBN: 1786435063

This book examines the processes, evolution and consequences of China’s rapid integration into the global economy. Through analyses of Beijing’s international economic engagement in areas such as trade, investment, finance, sustainable development and global economic governance, it highlights the forces shaping China’s increasingly prominent role in the global economic arena. Chapters explore China’s behavior in global economic governance, the interests and motivations underlying China’s international economic initiatives and the influence of politics, including both domestic politics and foreign relations, on the country’s global economic footprint.

How Global Currencies Work

How Global Currencies Work
Author: Barry Eichengreen
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2017-10-23
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1400888573

A powerful new understanding of global currency trends, including the rise of the Chinese yuan At first glance, the modern history of the global economic system seems to support the long-held view that the leading world power’s currency—the British pound, the U.S. dollar, and perhaps someday the Chinese yuan—invariably dominates international trade and finance. In How Global Currencies Work, three noted economists provide a reassessment of this history and the theories behind the conventional wisdom. Offering a new history of global finance over the past two centuries, and marshaling extensive new data to test established theories of how global currencies work, Barry Eichengreen, Arnaud Mehl, and Livia Chiţu argue for a new view, in which several national monies can share international currency status, and their importance can change rapidly. They demonstrate how changes in technology and in the structure of international trade and finance have reshaped the landscape of international currencies so that several international financial standards can coexist. They show that multiple international and reserve currencies have in fact coexisted in the pastupending the traditional view of the British pound’s dominance prior to 1945 and the U.S. dollar’s dominance more recently. Looking forward, the book tackles the implications of this new framework for major questions facing the future of the international monetary system, from whether the euro and the Chinese yuan might address their respective challenges and perhaps rival the dollar, to how increased currency competition might affect global financial stability.

Exchange Rate, Credit Constraints and China’s International Trade

Exchange Rate, Credit Constraints and China’s International Trade
Author: Miaojie Yu
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 309
Release: 2021-01-05
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9811575223

This book, by one of China's leading economists, explores the past and present of the RMB—the people's currency—as it is poised to compete with the dollar as the international reserve currency. Exchange rate movement and its pass-through to changes in domestic prices have been topics of wide concern among economists. However, relatively few studies have empirically investigated the relationship between exchange rate movements and China's international trade.This book fills this gap, using the general equilibrium theory of the western economic science norm systems, integrating the leading heterogeneous firm theory of international trade, attempting to set up a theoretical structural model for further prediction, and applying the data from sample cases to examine the structural model. This book will be of interest to economists, financiers, and China watchers.

Managing Director’s Global Policy Agenda to the International Monetary and Financial Committee

Managing Director’s Global Policy Agenda to the International Monetary and Financial Committee
Author: International Monetary Fund
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2015-09-29
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1498344143

The Executive Summary is also available in: Arabic , Chinese, French, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. The membership is facing a rapidly changing and uncertain world. The United States is poised to raise interest rates amid ongoing recovery, China’s expected slowdown as it rebalances growth is creating larger-than-anticipated spillovers, and commodity producers are facing the end of a long cycle of high commodity prices. These necessary transitions pose challenges, particularly for emerging and low-income developing countries, where prospects have dwindled the most. Policymakers are increasingly grappling with difficult policy trade-offs. Faced with limited room to maneuver and the need to adapt to new realities, what relative weight should be placed on supporting demand and current activity, on reducing financial risks as financial conditions tighten, and on implementing urgently needed structural reforms to revive future growth? Policies need to reflect country circumstances and coalesce into a new multilateralism. Mutually reinforcing policies are needed to support growth today, invest in resilience and safeguard financial stability, and implement the structural reforms needed for a sustainable and inclusive future. Policies should reflect member circumstances and also add up to a coherent whole—to ensure that demand is created not substituted, market resilience is enhanced not circumvented, and that structural reforms are enacted not delayed. Cooperation is vital in areas such as the global financial safety net, trade, climate change, international taxation, sustainable development goals (SDGs), and demographic transitions and migration. The Fund will support the membership at this juncture. The Fund has both the universal membership and mandate to address growth and economic stability issues at the national and global levels. To support the membership most effectively, the Fund will focus on three priorities that best reflect this new AIM: • Agility. Advice will focus on policies to support members cope with evolving transitions—respond to tighter and more volatile financial conditions and implement effective macro-structural reforms. The lending framework will deliver financial assistance quickly where needed. Delivery of technical assistance and training will be enhanced by greater use of online tools. • Integration. In the face of growing policy trade-offs, the Fund will support its members by better integrating policy advice across sectors, embracing evolving priorities, promoting integration of global, regional, and bilateral safety nets, and better leveraging synergies between surveillance and capacity building. • Member-Focused. With policy concerns evolving rapidly and advice becoming more dependent on country-specifics, the Fund will deepen its engagement with members, better deliver its knowledge, and ensure faster feedback to policymakers. The Fund continues to refine its core work—surveillance, lending, and capacity building—and to attain greater intellectual and cultural diversity to respond to this changing global environment and its corresponding policy challenges. To further improve services to the membership, Fund activities need to be fully supported by adequate financial, human, budgetary, and technological resources.