Derivative Instruments And Hedging Activities Derivative Instruments And Hedging Activities (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Oct. 27, 2012

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities Disclosure [Abstract]

Derivatives, Methods of Accounting, Hedging Derivatives

A majority of the Company’s revenue, expense and capital purchasing activities is transacted in U.S. dollars. However, the Company is exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk inherent in conducting business globally in numerous currencies. The Company is primarily exposed to foreign currency fluctuations related to operating expenses denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, of which the most significant to its operations for the fiscal year ended October 27, 2012 were the Chinese yuan, the euro, the Japanese yen, the Indian rupee, the British pound, the Singapore dollar and the Swiss franc. The Company has established a foreign currency risk management program to protect against the volatility of future cash flows caused by changes in foreign currency exchange rates. This program reduces, but does not always entirely eliminate, the impact of foreign currency exchange rate movements. The Company’s foreign currency risk management program includes foreign currency derivatives with cash flow hedge accounting designation that utilizes foreign currency forward and option contracts to hedge exposures to the variability in the U.S. dollar equivalent of anticipated non-U.S. dollar-denominated cash flows. These instruments generally have a maturity of less than one year. For these derivatives, the Company reports the after-tax gain or loss from the effective portion of the hedge as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss in stockholders’ equity and reclassifies it into earnings in the same period in which the hedged transaction affects earnings.