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Asked by: Aleixandra Cutelo
business and finance interest ratesDoes purchasing power parity hold?
Simply so, what does purchasing power parity mean?
Purchasing power parity (PPP) is a theory which states that exchange rates between currencies are in equilibrium when their purchasing power is the same in each of the two countries. The basis for PPP is the "law of one price".
In this way, why does PPP not hold in the real world?
In the presence of transactions costs, PPP will not hold exactly. This because, in the presence of transactions costs, arbitrage activity will not take place for those goods for which profits from arbitrage is lower than the transaction cost. – The PPP condition assumes that all goods are traded internationally.
The purchasing power parity theory predicts that market forces will cause the exchange rate to adjust when the prices of national baskets are not equal. If we are comparing country A to country B, with exchange rate E, the theory states that: The Price of a basket in country A = The Price of a basket in country B x E.