fluctuation

Change or variation in a quantity over time.

When the U.S. dollar is weak, this pads profits for U.S.-based companies with big operations overseas, such as Coca-Cola or McDonald's. A Big Mac in France always is charged in euros, so revenue doesn't change based on currency fluctuations. But when McDonald's reports earnings in dollars, a euro translates into more, providing a boost to overall revenue and profits. For non-U.S. companies with operations in the States, the earnings impact is reversed. Say Sony sells a $1,000 Trinitron TV in the U.S. When the company converts the transaction from dollars into yen, it comes to about ?105,000. That's less than it would've been two years ago. Back then, the same $1,000 TV amounted to sold for roughly ?125,000. (from November 2004)