Importers-exporters advised to manage risk

Ahmedabad, Nov 21 (UNI) In view of the present phase of high volatility in Dollar-Rupee exchange rate, Assistant Vice President of the MCX, Shrikant Kaudinya today advised Importers and Exporters to manage risk through hedging, using currency futures.

Mr Kaudinya was speaking at an interactive session on ''Risk Management: Practices using currency future'', jointly organised by the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry and MCX. He said that in India the market for hedging, using currency futures, has been started a few months ago. He said the markets volume of trade is fast increasing and even a common man with only 1000 dollars can enter the market.

He said that in the currency market all the transactions are marked by transparency, accountability and affordability. He also gave a number of illustrations to explain how exporters and importers can minimize their risk through MCX-SX using currency futures.

Aspy Bharucha, an expert in foreign exchange, said that devaluation of rupee in the context of dollars in the present period of recession is unprecedented. In the high volatility in exchange rate, there has been a reduction of about 12 per cent during last two months in the value of rupee against the dollar.

He, however, said ''our economic fundamentals are very strong but a number of factors including outsourcing and market sentiments have badly affected the exchange rate''. In Asia, currency of several countries including Philippines and South Korea had suffered greater devaluation as compared to the Indian rupee.

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