Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

We are exposed to market risk from changes in foreign currency exchange rates, commodity prices and interest rates. To reduce the risk from these changes, we use financial instruments from time to time. We do not hold or issue financial instruments for trading purposes.

Foreign C****urrency

We are exposed to foreign currency exchange risk as a result of transactions denominated in currencies other than the U.S. Dollar, as well as operating businesses in foreign countries. Periodically, we utilize foreign currency forward purchase and sales contracts to manage the volatility associated with certain foreign currency purchases and sales in the normal course of business. Contracts typically have maturities of twelve months or less. Realized gains and losses on transactions denominated in foreign currency are recorded as a component of cost of goods sold on the statements of comprehensive income.

The following is a summary of the twenty-eight foreign currency contracts outstanding as of December 31, 2017 (in thousands):

Commodity P****rices

We are a purchaser of commodities and of components manufactured from commodities including steel, aluminum, copper and others. As a result, we are exposed to fluctuating market prices for those commodities. While such materials are typically available from numerous suppliers, commodity raw materials are subject to price fluctuations. We generally buy these commodities and components based upon market prices that are established with the supplier as part of the purchase process. Depending on the supplier, these market prices may reset on a periodic basis based on negotiated lags and calculations. To the extent that commodity prices increase and we do not have firm pricing from our suppliers, or our suppliers are not able to honor such prices, we may experience a decline in our gross margins to the extent we are not able to increase selling prices of our products or obtain manufacturing efficiencies or supply chain savings to offset increases in commodity costs.

Periodically, we engage in certain commodity risk management activities to mitigate the impact of potential price fluctuations on our financial results. These derivatives typically have maturities of less than eighteen months. As of December 31, 2017, we had the following commodity forward contract outstanding (in thousands):

Interest R****ates

As of December 31, 2017, all of the outstanding debt under our Term Loan was subject to floating interest rate risk. As of December 31, 2017, we had the following interest rate swap contracts outstanding (in thousands):

At December 31, 2017, the fair value of these interest rate swaps was an asset of $4.4 million. Even after giving effect to these swaps, we are exposed to risks due to changes in interest rates with respect to the portion of our Term Loan that is not covered by the swaps. A hypothetical change in the LIBOR interest rate of 100 basis points would have changed annual cash interest expense by approximately $6.3 million (or, without the swaps in place, $9.3 million) in 2017.

For additional information on the Company’s foreign currency and commodity forward contracts, and interest rate swaps, including amounts charged to the statement of comprehensive income during 2017, refer to Note 4, “Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities,” and Note 5, “Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss,” to our consolidated financial statements in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.