A company has set a safety cash balance of $6 000. The standard deviation of the daily cash balance during the last year was $600 and the transaction cost was $8. The company also has an opportunity to invest idle cash in marketable securities at an annual interest rate of 12%. Assume a 360-day year.

Determine:

i. daily opportunity cost (interest rate) and the variance of daily cash flow. (2 marks)

ii. the targeted cash balance (the return point) for the firm. (3 marks)

iii. the upper limit of cash balance (1 mark)

iv. the number of short-term securities to be purchased or sold once the upper or lower limit is reached. (2 marks)

v. how you would evaluate this approach to cash management. (3 marks)