Executive Summary
Metair is a leading international manufacturer, distributor and retailer of automotive components and energy storage solutions. The company produces and sells components mainly to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in South Africa to manufacture cars and light commercial vehicles and has produced parts locally for more than 400,000 vehicles during 2020.
The group’s profitability is significantly influenced by the risk in exchange rates and currency fluctuations due to the fact that components for parts are imported from Europe and then sold to local car manufacturers, while import prices are set in the relative foreign currencies and need to be hedged in order to protect the ZAR value.
“The rand is one of the most volatile currencies in the world. We have moved from one crisis to the next – first the Covid pandemic and then the war in Russia / Ukraine, and now worldwide inflation and possible recession. We have witnessed first-hand how volatile currency markets can be and how sensitive currencies can react to any changes and news headlines. For importers and exporters, market risk and currency volatility pose real risks to their businesses, and exchange risk management continues to be a priority for South African CFOs and Treasurers.”
Hennie de Klerk, Founder and CEO at TreauryONE
Client Profile
Year founded: 1948
Industry: Automotive components manufacturer
Headquarters: Johannesburg, South Africa
Solution
Within the Metair group, TreasuryONE’s dealing team works closely with each subsidiary’s management team to protect them from adverse movements in the exchange rate when the risk arises, ensuring that the company is effectively hedged and adverse exchange rate movements are avoided.
TreasuryONE actively makes use of various methods to monitor the currency, such as the technical analysis graph below:
The group of companies under Metair are managed differently regarding the way the risk arises. TreasuryONE’s dealing team looks at each company on its own and constantly compares the benchmark rates with where the market is, thereby looking for opportunities in the market to constantly improve Metair’s effective coverage rate.
Below is a sample of a risk cycle:
The benchmark rate changes constantly, and the TreasuryONE team uses technical and economic analysis, coupled with the sentiment that is in the market at any given moment to determine levels that should be targeted.
Metair now has access to a complete Treasury Management System (TMS), managed by TreasuryONE’s team of experts. The sophisticated risk reporting in the TMS is very beneficial to Metair because exposure, hedges and current market rates can be combined for the team to know at all times where and how great their risk is.
Benefits
Hedging program, tailored to fit Metair’s business patterns, outlook and risk policy.
Advice on commodities price and interest rates risk in addition to FX risk advice.
100% cash visibility to better manage the cash in the business.
Access to full treasury management system and experienced TreasuryONE operational & cash management staff