Global Headwinds Cost North American Companies $21 Billion in FX Losses in Latest Quarter According to New Kyriba Report
Published: October 17, 2019
San Diego – Global currency swings were responsible for deep cuts into the revenues of US listed multinational corporations, costing them more than $21 billion in the past quarter, according to the new Kyriba Currency Impact Report (CIR), a comprehensive report that details the impact of foreign exchange (FX) among 1,200 companies in North America and Europe. This is the third consecutive quarter of $20+ billion in losses for North American companies – the longest such stretch in at least a decade.
“Currency volatility is having real, quantifiable consequences for companies. CFOs who dismissed this problem as a temporary wave of market drama need to reconsider their approach,” said Wolfgang Koester, Chief Evangelist for Kyriba. “They need to adopt modern tools to measure, monitor and manage their currency exposures accurately and in real-time, or risk facing more quarters of substantial losses.”
The CIR is the most comprehensive report of its kind, detailing the impact of foreign exchange exposures among publicly traded companies. In addition, all companies in the report do business in more than one currency, with at least 15 percent of their revenue coming from other nations.
For the tenth consecutive quarter, North American companies indicated the euro as the most impactful currency, with 44 percent of companies mentioning it during their second-quarter earnings calls, according to the report. Medical equipment and supplies and the business services industries experienced the greatest impact from currencies, as those industries continue to be affected by Brexit and other volatile geopolitical events around the globe.
In Europe, Currency Impacts Are Still a Billion Dollar Problem
Publicly traded European companies monitored in the Q2 2019 report indicated a collective currency loss of $1.55 billion, the eighth consecutive quarter of $1 billion impacts. The euro topped the list as the currency most mentioned as impactful by European companies during Q2 2019 earnings calls, closely followed by the U.S. dollar, Chinese yuan and Brazilian real.
To learn about specific industries affected and which currencies were most impactful to multinationals, download the full Kyriba Currency Impact Report here.
Kyriba will be showcasing its FX risk management solution at AFP in Boston, October 20-23, in booth #1619. The solution is part of a larger cloud platform designed to help CFOs and their teams better activate and protect their global cash and liquidity to achieve better financial outcomes.