Good Carry, Bad Carry

80 Pages Posted: 23 Jan 2019

See all articles by Geert Bekaert

Geert Bekaert

Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Finance

George Panayotov

Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (HKUST)

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Date Written: January 2019

Abstract

We distinguish between "good" and "bad" carry trades constructed from G-10 currencies. The good trades exhibit higher Sharpe ratios and sometimes positive return skewness, in contrast to the bad trades that have both substantially lower Sharpe ratios and highly negative return skewness. Surprisingly, good trades do not involve the most typical carry currencies like the Australian dollar and Japanese yen. The distinction between good and bad carry trades significantly alters our understanding of currency carry trade returns, and invalidates, for example, explanations invoking return skewness and crash risk.

Keywords: currency carry trade, currency risk factors, predictability

JEL Classification: C23, C53, G11

Suggested Citation

Bekaert, Geert and Panayotov, George, Good Carry, Bad Carry (January 2019). CEPR Discussion Paper No. DP13463, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3319784

Geert Bekaert (Contact Author)

Columbia University - Columbia Business School, Finance ( email )

NY
United States

George Panayotov

Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (HKUST) ( email )

Clearwater Bay
Kowloon, 999999
Hong Kong
852-2358-5049 (Phone)
852-2358-1749 (Fax)

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