Expectations and the UIP puzzles when foresight is limited

Abstract

This paper studies exchange rate dynamics and excess currency returns by incorporating bounded rationality into a small open-economy New Keynesian model. Decision-makers have limited foresight, planning only up to a finite horizon and approximating continuation values with coarse value functions learned from past experiences. This behavior generates an initial underreaction, followed by an overreaction in beliefs, leading to dynamic overshooting of exchange rate forecast errors. Moreover, the coexistence of forward- and backward-looking components in expectation formation breaks the forecast-horizon invariance implied from rational expectations. Our model thus provides a micro-foundation for understanding time- and forecast-horizon variability in uncovered interest parity (UIP) puzzles, and its predictions align closely with empirical estimates.