Investigating First-Stage Exchange Rate Pass-Through: Sectoral and Macro Evidence from Euro Area Countries

37 Pages Posted: 27 Mar 2017

See all articles by Nidhaleddine Ben Cheikh

Nidhaleddine Ben Cheikh

ESSCA School of Management; CREM - UMR CNRS 6211

Christophe Rault

IZA Institute of Labor Economics; University of Orleans; CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: March 01, 2017

Abstract

In this paper, we evaluate the first-stage pass-through, namely the responsiveness of import prices to the exchange rate changes, for a sample of euro area (EA) countries. Our study aims to shed further light on the role of microeconomic factors vs. macroeconomic factors in influencing the extent of the exchange rate pass-through (ERPT). As a first step, we conduct a sectoral analysis using disaggregated import prices data. We find a much higher degree of pass-through for more homogeneous goods and commodities, such as oil and raw materials, than for highly differentiated manufactured products, such as machinery and transport equipment. Our results confirm that cross-country differences in pass-through rates may be due to divergences in the product composition of imports. The higher share of imports from sectors with lower degrees of pass-through, the lower ERPT for an economy will be. In a next step, we investigate for the impact of some macroeconomics factors or common events experienced by EA members on the extent of pass-through. Using the System Generalized Method of Moments within a dynamic panel-data model, our estimates indicate that decline of import-price sensitivity to the exchange rate is not significant since the introduction of the single currency. Our findings suggest instead that the weakness of the euro during the first three years of the monetary union significantly raised the extent of the ERPT. This outcome could explain why the sensitivity of import prices has not fallen since 1999. We also point out a significant role played by the inflation in the Eurozone, as the responsiveness of import prices to exchange rate fluctuations tends to decline in a low and more stable inflation environment. Overall, our findings support the view that the extent of pass-through is comprised of both macro- and microeconomic aspects that policymakers should take into account.

Keywords: exchange rate pass-through, import prices, dynamic panel data

JEL Classification: E310, F310, F400

Suggested Citation

Ben Cheikh, Nidhaleddine and Rault, Christophe and Rault, Christophe, Investigating First-Stage Exchange Rate Pass-Through: Sectoral and Macro Evidence from Euro Area Countries (March 01, 2017). CESifo Working Paper Series No. 6366, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2941388 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2941388

Nidhaleddine Ben Cheikh

ESSCA School of Management ( email )

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Christophe Rault (Contact Author)

University of Orleans ( email )

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