Disentangling the Nexus Between Exchange Rate Volatility, Exports, and FDI: Empirical Evidence from the Indian Economy

Abstract

The primary objective of the study was to scrutinize the effect of exchange rate volatility on foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows and Indian exports during the flexible exchange rate period. The bounds testing procedure confirmed the presence of a single (stable) long-run relationship between exports, conditional exchange rate volatility, and unconditional exchange rate volatility. The autoregressive distributed lag model verified that volatility in Indian rupee vis-à-vis USD had a significant (negative) impact on Indian exports and FDI inflows. Besides, trade openness and gross domestic product, in the long run, were positive and significant in explaining the exports and FDI inflows. Based on the empirical results, India should devise suitable macroeconomic policies to reduce exchange rate volatility to make the export-led growth strategy a success. Moreover, emerging and progressive economies like India should strengthen and streamline their domestic foreign exchange markets without compromising the level of trade openness. More precisely, the forward exchange markets’ coverage should be broadened, as they provide protection (hedging) against the exchange rate volatility in the long run.