(Source: http://www.investopedia.com/exam-guide/cfa-level-1/global-economic-analysis/fixed-pegged-exchange.asp) A fixed exchange rate system maintains fixed exchange rates between currencies; those rates are referred to as official parity. A nation with fixed exchange rates must enforce those rates. An early form of fixed exchange rates was to specify the value of a nation's currency in terms of gold (the "gold standard"). The Gold Standard The gold standard system worked reasonably well during the 1800s, but it was gradually disbanded during the twentieth century. In 1944, leading non-communist nations agreed on a fixed exchange rate system (the Bretton Woods System) whereby the value of the U.S. dollar was pegged at $35 per ounce and other nations then fixed the value of their currencies in relation to the U.S. dollar. Private individuals could not acquire gold at that price; only governments traded gold at that price. During the 1960s, the U.S. government purs...
Research in simple terms refers to search for knowledge. It is a scientific and systematic search for information on a particular topic or issue. It is also known as the art of scientific investigation. Several social scientists have defined research in different ways. In the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, D. Slesinger and M. Stephension (1930) defined research as “the manipulation of things, concepts or symbols for the purpose of generalizing to extend, correct or verify knowledge, whether that knowledge aids in the construction of theory or in the practice of an art”. According to Redman and Mory (1923), research is a “systematized effort to gain new knowledge”. It is an academic activity and therefore the term should be used in a technical sense. According to Clifford Woody (Kothari, 1988), research comprises “defining and redefining problems, formulating hypotheses or suggested solutions; collecting, organizing and evaluating data; making deductions and reaching conclusions; a...