Multinational Finance

International Capital Budgeting

(Chapter 17)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Where we are?
Previous lecture:
‰Foreign direct investments (FDI)
¾ Reasons for FDI
¾ Process of becoming MNC (FDI)
¾ Strategies to remain MNC
¾ Where to FDI ? – Country risk analysis
– Political risk (assessing the risk of investing in different
countries)
Today’s lecture:
‰International capital budgeting
¾ Methods for assessing the profitability of FDI
(comparing different options)
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 Outline of Lecture
‰Basics of capital budgeting (investment
analysis)
‰Issues in foreign investment analysis
‰Incorporating political risk analysis
‰Growth options (dynamic investment
analysis)
‰Managing political risks

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Multinational Capital Budgeting

‰ Multinational capital budgeting, like traditional domestic
capital budgeting, focuses on the cash inflows and
outflows associated with prospective long-term (foreign)
investment projects
‰ Same theoretical framework as domestic capital
budgeting
‰ The basic steps are:
¾ Identify the initial capital invested
¾ Estimate cash flows to be derived from the project over time,
including an estimate of the terminal value of the investment
¾ Identify the appropriate discount rate to use in valuation
¾ Apply traditional capital budgeting decision criteria such as Net
Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Returns (IRR)
¾ Alternative, Adjusted Present Value (APV).

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Basics of Capital Budgeting
‰Firms must select combinations of investment
projects that maximize the firms value to it’s
shareholders
‰Decision rule/criteria is needed:
‰Net Present Value (NPV)
¾ Consistent with shareholder wealth maximization
(focus on cash flows and opportunity cost of money
invested – not accounting profits)
¾ Value additive: “The NPV of a set of independent
project is simply the sum of NPVs of the individual
projects
– Implication: each project can be considered on its own

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Net Present Value

‰“present value of future cash flows
discounted at the projects cost of capital
minus the initial net cash outlay for the
project”
n
Xt
NPV = ∑ − I0
t =1 (1 + k )
t

where
I 0 = the initial cash investment
X t = the net cash (after - tax) flow in period t
k = the project' s cost of capital (discount rate)
n = investment horizon
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 Net Present Value
‰Need to calculate:
¾Net cash flows (in- and out flows) from the
project
¾Cost of funding the project
¾The terminal value of project
‰Need to decide on:
¾The lifetime of the project (horizon)
¾The discount rate (projects cost of capital)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Incremental Cash Flows

Total project vs. incremental cash flows
‰“Shareholders are interested in how many
additional dollars they will receive in the future
for the dollars they lay out today”
‰Distinction between the projects total cash flows
and the incremental cash flow from the project
‰Incremental cash flow: compare worldwide
corporate cash flows without investment (base
case) with post-investment corporate cash flows
¾ Need to assess what will happen if we don’t make
investment

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Incremental Cash Flows
‰Project total cash flow and incremental cash
flows may deviate due to:
‰Cannibalization:
¾ A new investment (product) takes sales away from
the existing products
¾ A foreign production plant’s production substitutes
parent company export
¾ Incremental cash flow: If investment replace other
existing cash flows (that otherwise would have
existed) these cash flows (the replaced) need to be
subtracted from the investments total cash flow to
obtain the incremental cash flow of the investment
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

Incremental Cash Flows

‰Sales creation
¾Opposite of cannibalization
¾“investment leads to increasing cash flows at
other production sites (than otherwise), due to
e.g. a stronger local position of the firm”
¾Incremental cash flow = investments total
cash flows + “sales creation cash flows”

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Other Cash Flow Issues
‰Opportunity cost
¾ Project/investment cost must include the true
economic cost of any resource required for the project
regardless if the firm already owns it.
¾ What the resource would be worth in use or on the
market otherwise – the opportunity cost
‰Transfer prices
¾ “the price at which goods and service are traded
internally”
¾ Prices used in the capital budgeting process should
be valued at market prices

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Other Cash Flow Issues

‰ Fees and Royalties
¾ Firms charges of legal counsel, power, heat ,rent, R&D,
headquarter staff, management costs usually in form of fees and
royalties
¾ Should only be included in capital budgeting process if the
investment leads to additional expenditures
‰ Intangible benefits
¾ Better quality, faster distribution times and higher customer
satisfaction and so on
¾ Learning experience
¾ Broader knowledge base
¾ Higher competitive skills
¾ Should be attribute as positive benefits to an investment
¾ Usually hard to estimate (the value of the intangible benefits)
¾ Can be stated separate in the investment analysis

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Choice of Discount Rate
‰Standard discount rate: Weighted Average
Cost of Capital (WACC) (Chapter 14)
‰WACC (assuming the financial structure and risk
of the project similar as for the firm as whole):
k0 = (1 − L) ke + Lkd (1 − t )
where
L = parent' s debt ratio (debt to total assets)
ke = cost of equity capital
kd = cost of debt capital
t = tax level
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

Choice of Discount Rate

‰WACC (assuming the financial structure and
risk of the project different than for the firm as
whole):
k0' = (1 − L' )ke' + L' kd' (1 − t )
where
L' = project' s debt ratio
ke' = project ' s cost of equity capital
kd = project ' s cost of debt capital
t = tax level

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Choice of Discount Rate
‰WACC – weights are based on the proportion of
the firms capital structure or the financing
structure of the project
‰Alternative discount rate:Discount cash-flows
using the all-equity rate
¾ Abstracts from the projects financial structure
¾ Based on the riskiness of the projects anticipated
cash flow
¾ The firms cost of capital if the firm was all-equity
financed (no debt)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

All-Equity Rate
‰ To calculate the all-equity rate k* we can use the CAPM
model (gives the relationship between the expected return
and the systematic risk of the asset)
The CAPM
k * = r f + β * ( rm − r f )
where
r f = riskless rate of interest
rm = interest rate of the market portfolio
β = all - equity beta (associate
*
d with an
unleverage d cash flow)
Note: k* = riskless rate of interest + risk premium based on the risk
of the project (systematic risk)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Estimating the All-equity Beta
‰Estimate the firm’s stock price beta βe
‰To transform βe into β* the effect of debt
financing need to be separated out
βe
β* =
1 + (1 − t ) D / E
where
D = debt
E = equity
t = marginal tax rate
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

Adjusted Present Value

‰ The value of the project is equal to:
1) The present value of project cash flow after
taxes but before financing costs, discounted
at k*
2) The present value of the tax savings on debt
financing (interest tax shield)
3) The present value of any savings (penalties)
on interest cost associated with project
specific financing (government may e.g.
subsidize interest rates)
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 Adjusted Present Value
n n n
Xt Tt St
APV = ∑ + ∑ + ∑ − I0
t =1 (1 + k ) t =1 (1 + id ) t =1 (1 + id )
* t t t

where
I 0 = the initial cash investment
X t = the net cash (after - tax) flow in period t
k * = the all - equity rate
n = investment horizon
Tt = Tax savings in year t due to debt financing
St = before − tax home currency value of interest
rate subsidies (penalties)
id = before − tax cost of home currency debt
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

Issues in Foreign Investment

Analysis
‰ Two additional issues raised in the
analysis of a foreign project:
1) Should the cash flow be measured from
the viewpoint of the project or that of the
parent firm?
2) How should additional economic and
political risks that are uniquely foreign be
reflected in the investment analysis?
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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1) Parent vs. Project Cash Flow
‰A substantial difference can exist between the
cash flow of a (foreign) project and the amount
that is remitted to the parent firm
¾ Differing tax systems
¾ Legal and political constraints on the movement of
funds e.g. exchange rate controls
¾ Unanticipated foreign exchange rate changes
¾ Royalties and fees are returns to the parent company

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

1) Parent vs. Project Cash Flow

‰Any foreign project must be analyzed from
the viewpoint of the parent since:
‰Cash flows to the parent are the basis for:
¾dividends to stockholders
¾reinvestment elsewhere in the world
¾repayment of corporate-wide debt
¾other purposes that affect the firm’s many
interest groups.

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 A Three-Stage Approach
‰ A three-stage approach is recommended for simplifying
project (investment) analysis
1) Project cash flows are calculated from the foreign
subsidiary’s standpoint (as if it were a separate firm)
2) Obtain specific forecasts concerning the amounts,
timing and form of transfer to parent firm, as well as
information concerning taxes and other expenses in the
transfer process
3) Take account of indirect benefits (“sales creation”) and
costs (“cannibalization”) the investment confers on the
rest of the corporation

Calculate incremental cash flow from the investment to

the parent firm
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

Estimation of Incremental Project

Cash Flow to the Parent Firm
Estimation entails:
1) Adjust for effects of transfer pricing, fees and
royalties
¾ Use market cost/prices for goods, services and
capital transferred internally
¾ Add back fees and royalties to project cash flow
since these are benefits to the parent firm
¾ Remove the fixed portions of costs like corporate
overhead

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Estimation of Incremental Project
Cash Flow to the Parent Firm
2) Adjust for global costs/benefits that are not reflected in
the investment’s financial statement
¾ Cannibalization of sales of other units
¾ Creation of incremental sales by other units
¾ Additional taxes owed when repatriating profits
¾ Foreign tax credits usable elsewhere (e.g. from debt interest
rates)
¾ Effects from diversification of production facilities
¾ Effects from market diversification
¾ Effect from providing a key link in a global network
¾ Effects from increased knowledge about competitors,
technology, markets and products
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

2) Accounting for Foreign

Economical and Political Risks
‰ When evaluating investments firms must
assess the consequence of different political
and economic risks (e.g. expropriation,
currency fluctuations)
Three main methods:
1) Shortening the minimum pay-back period
2) Raising the required rate of return on the
investment
3) Adjusting cash flows to reflect the specific
impact of a given risk

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 2) Accounting for Foreign
Economical and Political Risks
‰ Method 1 and 2 are commonly used
¾ Due to vague views of the specific risk directed towards the
investment
¾ Ease of implementation
‰ Drawback:
¾ How much should the required rate of return be raised?
¾ How much shorter should the pay-back period be?
¾ Penalizes all future cash-flows equal without regard to
differences in risk over time
¾ Adjusting pay-back period and rate of returns – less attractive
from a theoretical standpoint

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

2) Accounting for Foreign

Economical and Political Risks
‰Adjusting future cash-flow – preferred from
a logical point of view
‰Possibility of incorporating all available
information about the impact of a specific
risk (e.g. at a specific point in time) on
future cash flow
‰Adjust the cash-flow each period with the
probability for different outcomes due to
the risk
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 2) Accounting for Foreign Economical and
Political Risks
Example: Risk of expropriation (with probability p) during the next year of
Banana plantation
Compensation if expropriated: $100 million
Expected value (if not expropriated):$300 million
Have an offer to sell plantation: $128 million
Discount rate: 22%

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Accounting for Exchange Rate

Changes
Two ways:
1) Convert nominal foreign currency cash flow into nominal
home currency terms (forecasts of future exchange
rate) → discount the nominal home currency cash flow
with the nominal domestic required rate of return
2) Discount the nominal foreign currency cash flows at the
nominal foreign currency required rate of return →
convert the foreign currency present value into the
home currency using the spot rate
‰ Should give the same result if international Fisher effect
(IFE) holds
‰ Keep parity conditions in mind (e.g. take account of
different inflation levels between countries) and adjust
for offsetting inflation and exchange rate changes
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 Growth Options
‰Discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis treat
expected cash flows as given at the outset
‰DCF – static approach – all operating
decisions are set in advance
‰However, in reality:
¾“opportunity to make decisions contingent on
information that becomes available in the
future”

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Growth Options
‰The ability to alter decisions in response to
new information in the future has a value –
similar to an option – that should be
incorporated in the investment analysis
‰An initial investment that holds future
possibilities (close, increase sales…) is a
growth option

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Example: Growth Option
‰ Decision to reopen a gold mine:
¾ Cost: $1 million
¾ 40, 000 ounces of gold in the mine
¾ Variable cost $390/ounce
¾ Expected gold price in one year: $400/ounce
¾ Discount rate: 15%

DCF analysis
(400 - 390) × 40,000
NPV = − 1,000,000
1.15
= −$652,174

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Example: Growth Option

‰DCF analysis ignores the option not to produce if
it is unprofitable to do so
‰Suppose that the gold price next year is either
$300/ounce with probability 0.5 or $500/ounce
with probability 0.5 (expected value $400)
‰Allow decision to mine or not to depend on
future gold price
¾ If gold price $300/ounce – do not mine
¾ If gold price $500/ounce - mine

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Example: Growth Option

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Example: Growth Option

‰Incorporating the mine owner’s option not to
mine when the gold price falls below the
extraction cost gives the NPV:

$2,200,000
NPV = − 1,000,000
1.15
= $913,043
Multinational Finance, Jörgen
Hellström

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 Example: Growth Option
‰The ability to alter decisions in response to
new information may contribute
significantly to the value of an investment
($913,043 vs. -$652,174)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

Growth options
‰ The value of the flexibility to act on future information
depends on (similar as options):
1) The length of time the project can be deferred – longer time
larger value of the project
2) The risk of the project – the higher risk the higher value of the
project (gains and losses are asymmetric)
3) The level of interest rates – high interest rate do in general
increase the value of the project since the present value of the
option to defer decreases
4) The proprietary nature of the option – the more exclusively
owned option the higher value of the project

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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 Managing Political Risk
‰ Assume the firm has decided to invest
‰ How can the firm minimize the political
risk?
1) Avoidance
2) Insurance
3) Negotiation
4) Structuring the investment

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

1) Avoidance
‰Screening out investments in politically
uncertain countries
‰Ignores potentially high returns

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Hellström

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 2) Insurance
‰Most developed countries sell political risk
insurances to cover the foreign assets of
domestic firms
‰Insurance against risk of expropriation,
currency inconvertibility and political
violence

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

3) Negotiation
‰Reach an understanding with the host
government before the investment,
defining rights and responsibilities of both
parties – concession agreement

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Hellström

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 4) Structuring the investment
‰Increasing the host government’s cost of
interfering with the companies operations
¾Local affiliate dependent on sister companies
(supplier)
¾Establish a single global trade mark
¾Sourcing production in multiple plants
¾External financial stakeholders (other
governments, international financial
institutions)

Multinational Finance, Jörgen

Hellström

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