Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.
Our market risk disclosures involve forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. We are exposed to market risk related to changes in interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates.
Interest Rate Risk
Our long-term debt portfolio, excluding finance leases and other debt, consists of $1.9 billion fixed-rate notes and $450 million variable-rate term loans based on the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”). For our variable-rate debt, we entered into interest rate swap agreements to convert $125 million of variable-rate U.S. dollar (“USD”) denominated debt into USD-denominated fixed-rate debt. Additionally, we entered into cross-currency swap agreements to convert $250 million of variable-rate debt from SOFR to the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (“Euribor”). As of December 31, 2024, a hypothetical 1% increase in SOFR and Euribor would have increased our interest expense by approximately $3 million.
Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk
A significant proportion of our net assets and income are in non-USD currencies, primarily the British pound sterling (“GBP”) and the Euro (“EUR”). We are exposed to currency risk from potential changes in functional currency values of our foreign currency denominated assets, liabilities and cash flows. Consequently, the depreciation of the EUR or the GBP relative to the USD could adversely impact on our financial results.
We entered into cross-currency swap and forward agreements to manage our foreign currency exchange risk by effectively converting a portion of the fixed-rate USD-denominated debt, including the interest payments, to fixed-rate EUR-denominated debt and a portion of the floating-rate USD-denominated loans, including the interest payments, to floating-rate EUR-denominated debt. We use foreign currency options and forward contracts to mitigate the risk of a reduction in the value of earnings from our operations that use the EUR or GBP as their functional currency.
As of December 31, 2024, a uniform 10% strengthening in the value of the USD relative to the EUR and GBP would have decreased our net assets by $70 million and $92 million, respectively, net of foreign currency hedging. These theoretical calculations assume that an instantaneous, parallel shift in exchange GBP and EUR rates occurs.
See Note 11. “Fair Value Measurements and Financial Instruments” to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
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