The Impact of Exchange Rate Growth Threshold on the Efficiency of Industrial Sector in Iran

In this study, the role of  exchange rate growth threshold on the efficiency of the industrial sector on Iran during 2005-2016 was investigated using panel data threshold regression model. Also, Data envelopment analysis Bootstrap approach was used to extract the efficiency of selected industries based on the classification of Iran Statistics Center. The results show that industry sector efficiency is achievable at the exchange rate growth lower than 44.13% threshold. Since, the industrial production is highly related to the import prices, the lower growth rates of exchange rate may result in positive and significant effects on efficiency and the higher ones may affect it negatively. Also, the study shows that the growth of financial sector measured based on the growth of banking sector and non-performing loans have a significant and negative impact on the efficiency of various industries. These results suggest that the exchange rate growth should be monitored regularly and be kept below the threshold; and the financial credit expansion should be supervised regularly and purposefully so that the non-performing loans volume would be in control, and finally to reduce the speculative incentives in the times of exchange rate  growth above the threshold, financial credits should be channelize to target the real sector economy.