Item 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
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Item 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
In the normal course of business, we are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate and interest rate risks that could impact our financial position and results of operations.
Interest Rate Risk
Changes in interest rates could impact our anticipated interest income on our cash equivalents and investments in marketable securities. Our cash equivalents and investments are fixed-rate short-term and long-term securities. Fixed-rate securities may have their fair market value adversely impacted due to a rise in interest rates, and as a result, our future investment income may fall short of expectations due to changes in interest rates or we may suffer losses in principal if forced to sell securities which have declined in market value due to changes in interest rates. As of December 31, 2016, we had approximately $310.8 million invested in available-for-sale marketable securities. An immediate 10% change in interest rates would not have a material adverse impact on our future operating results and cash flows.
We do not have interest bearing liabilities as of December 31, 2016, and, therefore, we are not subject to risks from immediate interest rate increases.
Currency Rate Risk
As a result of our international business activities, including the impact of our new international corporate structure in 2016, our financial results could be affected by factors such as changes in foreign currency exchange rates or economic conditions in foreign markets, and there is no assurance that exchange rate fluctuations will not harm our business in the future. We generally sell our products in the local currency of the respective countries. This provides some natural hedging because most of the subsidiaries’ operating expenses are generally denominated in their local currencies as discussed further below. Regardless of this natural hedging, our results of operations may be adversely impacted by exchange rate fluctuations. For the year ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, we had foreign currency net losses of $8.0 million and $4.0 million, respectively.
In September 2015, we started to enter into foreign currency forward contracts to minimize the short-term impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations on cash and certain trade and intercompany receivables and payables. These forward contracts are not designated as hedging instruments and do not subject us to material balance sheet risk due to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. The gains and losses on these forward contracts are intended to offset the gains and losses in the underlying foreign currency denominated monetary assets and liabilities being economically hedged. These instruments are marked to market through earnings every period and generally are one month in original maturity. We do not enter into foreign currency forward contracts for trading or speculative purposes. As our international operations grow, we will continue to reassess our approach to managing the risks relating to fluctuations in currency rates. It is difficult to predict the impact hedging activities could have on our results of operations. As of December 31, 2016, we did not have any outstanding foreign exchange forward contracts.
Although we will continue to monitor our exposure to currency fluctuations, and, where appropriate, may use financial hedging techniques in the future to minimize the effect of these fluctuations, the impact of an aggregate change of 10% in foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar on our results of operations and financial position could be material.
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