Brutal decline of the US dollar
 

It really is fast and alarming! I'll go back to Argentina where my money goes much farther for similar or better quality of experience.
I read in the Bloomberg report that there is just bad sentiment about the dollar in general. Excuse my French but this SUCKS.

BYE.

Have a nice trip. One less whiner to listen to. Same alarmist who brings this topic up every couple of months.

Up to a point, it's not a big deal and from an economic viewpoint, one can almost understand the idea that a cheaper US dollar is beneficial.

But note I said up to a point. One has to wonder if the current administration's deficit management of the US economy is undermining the USD and allow it to fall far too low and whether it is healthy overall if this continues.

Don't cut off your nose to spite your face. Millions and millions of people are very eager to take your place.

Yes, the dollar is weak and long-term, it isn't position you want to remain in. However, do you see inflation as a problem in our society? Sure, oil prices are rising but that isn't being caused by the fall of the dollar. Apart from oil, do we have inflation in apparel, food, etc? It is the risk of inflation that is the biggest risk of a weak currency.

The low dollar is the price we paid for having historically low interest rates. Said another way, if you had a $300,000 mortgage, and you refinanced for 30 years at a rate 5%, versus the 7% you might have had, you saved about $4600 a year.

Not to turn this into an economics debate, but of all the problems facing our economy, the weak dollar is the least problematic. Low wage job creation, sure we've got something to worry about.

I wouldn't go to a country simply because it has a better exchange rate
"unless" it's a destination you have wanted to go to anyway.

Bon Voyage.

Hi

For me this is great. I buy stuff from the net all the time and now 1 dollar is 6.5 kroner. A few years ago when my wife and I went to Florida 1 dollar was 8.4 kroner. So I get a lot more for my money these days. I guess I have to start my Christmas present shopping on amazon.com :-)

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com

I don't want to knock Argentina, but if someone offered me a totally free trip for three weeks to either Europe or Argentina guess which one I'd choose. If it's all about saving money, then stay home and you'll save even more!

If the dollar continues to weaken, it will reduce my trips to Europe. I already have one planned for next summer, but after that if the the dollar drops again as far as it has so far, I probably will not be going there again.

At £1.45 or €.95 to $1, I could afford to do things that don't make sense at £2.25 or €1.60.

Keith

For the first summer in a number of years, we will not be going to Europe next summer. But it isn't because of the money. Europe would be cheaper. Instead we've decided to rent an apartment in New York City for a month -- that month will easily cost us 50% more than what we normally spend for a month in Europe -- even with the dropping dollar!

Did you notice the original poster uses the name "maletas"?

Spanish for "suitcases".

I hope he uses his soon.

Well he did say "go back to." You don't like spanish speakers?

Keith

Or is that Portugese?

Keith

>At £1.45 or €.95 to $1, I could afford to do things that don't make sense at £2.25 or €1.60.<

Of course you could afford it. Those are historical lows.

There are winners and losers for any currency fluctuations. I suggest that it is more useful to focus on ways to maximize one's income, through work or investment or saving, rather than worrying about currency ups and downs.

The following was in my e-mailbox this morning from an international banker friend of mine. No agenda here; both he and I are voting for Bush.

"I spent the past three weeks in Britain, primarily with my friend who is a retired University of Edinburgh political science professor. He is vastly more negative on the US economy than I am and argues aggressively that investments should be 100% in cash and that this will be doubly true if Bush is re-elected. It was kind of nice to be in the position of pointing out the positive aspects of our economic future. But his comments did seem to be reflective of a growing percentage of at least the British market analysts. This could suggest that investment inflows may be in for a harder time as we go forward and that would not be a good thing for the dollar."

I wouldn't let your friend invest lunch money let alone real money.Remember he is an "academic". Those who can do,those who can't teach.

Isn't that backwards. Isn't 1.60 euro to the dollar better than .95 euro to the dollar? Same with the Brit money.

Or maybe I shouldn't have had that second double Old Fashioned at lunch.