xyz123

Wow it's really getting scary out there (or great for travelling Americans)...I simply can't believe what's happening and don't really understand it...

Euro finished just above $1.25 today (US)....all kidding aside, are we headed to where it was a couple of years ago when teh USD was worth more than the euro?

Sterling finished under $1.50...$1.30 now seems like it's only a matter of time...

And it was just yesterday when all the Europeans were crossing the pond to take advantage of bargains in the USA....it may now pay for those who can afford it to seek out bargains in Europe.

xyz123

BTW...what has happened to our dear friend logos who proclaimed on this bulletin board day after day the US$ was headed for a collapse...

But really somebody is just going to have to explain to dumb little old me how the US economy can be in such shambles yet the dollar is skyrocketing.

janisj

I just wish my two trips next Spring were now - Haven't seen $1.49 = £1 for a VERY long time.

Nikki

After a year of horrifyingly bad timing of my family's travel in relation to currency exchange and gasoline costs, I am enjoying watching the exchange rate this week from Paris.

It almost makes up for being in Scotland in August, when the pound was at its high point. Now I'm almost tempted, after I return home to Massachusetts, to fly to Denver, rent a truck and drive to San Francisco again, just to take advantage of the $800 it would save us on gas over the same trip we made in July.

travelgourmet

<i>But really somebody is just going to have to explain to dumb little old me how the US economy can be in such shambles yet the dollar is skyrocketing.</i>

It's all relative. The US economy is certainly in a rough patch, but so too are the European economies. Those that predicted the European economies were sufficiently insulated were simply delusional. The upside for the US is that we took the bitter pill a bit earlier than the Europeans and will likely exit this downturn a bit sooner as well. Certainly, the ECB and the BOE will be chopping interest rates even further (probably heading close to 1%), and this will only further weaken the Euro and Sterling. And, if they hold off on chopping rates, then they will just end up crippling the export sector and curtailing investment, slowing growth.

My guess is that we may be drifting toward parity between the Euro and USD. I'm not sure we will get back to the rates we had back at the beginning of the decade, but I think something close to parity is certainly a possibility.

The big question, to my mind, is what will happen to the Pound. It has taken an awful beating lately. Also, the British economy is especially weak right now, with so much tied up in the financial and service sectors, the financial crisis is hitting them hard. Also, by some accounts, the housing bubble in the UK was at least the equal of anything in the US. I wouldn't want to presume parity, but something like $1.25/&pound;1 seems more possible by the day.

ira

Hi xy,

&gt;the dollar is skyrocketing.&lt;

No, it isn't.

The GBP and the Euro are falling.

&gt;... how the US economy can be in such shambles....&lt;

Europe is even more shamblier.

Robespierre

<i>But really somebody is just going to have to explain to dumb little old me how the US economy can be in such shambles yet the dollar is skyrocketing.</i>

&quot;Irrational exuberance.&quot; (Alan Greenspan's term.)

xyz123

But it's not just the euro and sterling..

Last spring, the USD and CAD were just about at par and as a matter of fact that CAD was worth a tad more than the USD. Right now the CAD is only worth $0.81 US

The AUD was only a few cents behind the USD. Today right now AUD is less than $0.65

The CHF had also just about reached parity with the USD. At this moment, the CHF is about $0.84

ronkala

Isn't it great? My apartment for the last two weeks of April in Zandvoort has dropped below $100.00 a night at this rate. I hope the euro stays in this range through the beginning of April when I pay the rental balance.

Dukey

I wish the Dollar were in as good a shape vs the Japanese yen

travelgourmet

<i>I wish the Dollar were in as good a shape vs the Japanese yen</i>

Huh??? The dollar is actually pretty strong vs the Yen.

As of today, the dollar is:
&gt; 13% higher than the average rate from the past 5 years
&gt; 22% higher than the high point over the past 5 years
&gt; 8% higher than the average for the past 12 months
&gt; 15% higher than the peak rate for the past 12 months
&gt; 12% higher than 11/13/07

Seems like it has strengthened to me.

logos999

&gt;US$ was headed for a collapse...
The dollar will have ceased to exist after the Obama years and will collapse in the near future.

The chart is going to look something like General Motors's chart looks today.

There's not even the slightest doubt that it will end like this.

Food stamps for meat and other things but nobody will in debt any more even the state will be debt free.

So everybody be happy.

LoveItaly

The problem though is exports by US companies will not sell as well which will cause more finanical problems for US company's.

ira

Hi xy,

&gt; At this moment, the CHF is about $0.84...&lt;

I believe that the CHF is linked to the euro.
...................................
Hi lov,

I think that the rising dollar will be more of a problem for China than for the US, since the Yuan is pegged to the USD.

logos999

The Yuan is pegged to a basket of currencies.

travelgourmet

<i>I believe that the CHF is linked to the euro.</i>

I hope it wasn't a deeply-held belief, because it is incorrect. It is no more linked than the US dollar.