EURO DROPPING FAST

Just watched the Dow go from about 400 down to almost 1,000 down in a matter of minutes. Now down about 350. Talk about volatile.

SHHHHH!!!!!

Don't jinx it :)

I think Europe's financial straits will keep the Euro at depressed levels for some time to come??? IMHO as always.

I disagree. I've got inside information that the Euro will skyrocket in value by June 1...because that's when I'll be in Europe and the dollar ALWAYS sinks when I go to Europe :-)

Germany just 'found' a 40b Euro tax deficit over the next 3 years.

Unless the US breaks some really bad economic news the Euro may continue to fall

Sorry Steve and Tim. You are both wrong.

The dollar will continue to gain ground on the Euro because I 'hedged' our May trip when I bought 1000 euros in January at .68c

Tyson, what is yoru source for buying euros? I know I've seen it mentioned here, but can't find it. Thanks.

Lola,

At that time it was AIB's ATM on Main Street Buncrana, Co Donegal. :)

The European ATMs are the cheapest way for me to get Euros. My local bank charges about .5% over the published interbank rate with no ATM fees.

Wells Fargo or BofA may have a pretty good deal if you have an account with them and want to get Euros before your trip. My local bank is horrible about 10-15% over the interbank rate.

I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that the Euro drops even further. I leave for my trip on May 14, 2010....right around the corner

Until they outlaw this derivative and program trading crap investing and investors have NO chance.

Tim and Steve, I just want to thank you two for taking one for the team! I'm so relieved to know the Euro is going to be way down when we're there in September!

I read one place that "parity" for the dollar and the Euro was when the Euro is at $1.20. I assume they were referring to the relative buying power. If so, we're fast approaching parity.

Much to my chagrin I will be in Paris at the same time Steve will be. Next time I'll check with him before booking, so I'm not at the mercy of his currency gods!!

1.20 would be a good rate. So long as it is reached by mid June when we'll be in Munich. As for currency traders? I traded T-Bonds at the CBOT for a decade and believe me currency traders rendition of long term is a time span of 4 hours.

On one hand happy,, on other hand I am thinking I COULD have booked that nicer hotel,, darn. LOL

I've been watching this like a hawk. Do I pay off my apartment now or wait? hmmmmmm....

I have heard that mid-month there are some bonds that will come due and Greece may not be able to pay them so it may drop some more.

the Dow drop was actually a computer glitch! it came right back up as I understand.

Best time was back in 2002, traveling in Ireland which was not so expensive then as it is now. And the Euro was trading at eighty cents! Great B&B's for less than $50 per night! Even better, Ireland was still relatively cheap at the time even setting aside currency. It's only fair that the dollar should rebound, Europeans have enjoyed bargain travel in the U.S. for years.

6 months out anything can and will happen. And not just in Europe. I would in no way want to speculate on a price. If Greece gets bailed (short term) the Euro will strengthen. If Greece and other have further problems the Euro will weaken even more. S-term trends are nearly impossible to predict. It's a crap shoot.

Going to Germany in October. What to buy a large amount of Euro before we leave. Should I wait? Will it drop more? Any suggestions?

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's still to our advantage when I go to Italy in October. When I went in 07 it was $1.50 to a euro and $2 to 1 GBP. OUCH!

I heard an analyst on bloomberg radio saying that we should hit parity by 2011. That was before the talk of the new fund so who knows. Know people are talking about Greece going off the euro on a temp basis.... If that happens look for the euro to bounce! Crazy days but I have been thinking that 1.25$ is a reasonable amount for euro to be.... so I wait.

Can't wait until it back to where it should be at 1 euro equals 85 cents.

Go Greece go.

Edwin

$.88 or so would be great for we Americans abroad. But unless their financial state is much worst than we've been told it won't happen???

I keep mentally apologizing to all my European family because I'm so happy the euro is falling! but hey, they get to see me, so that makes up for it, right?

Right now, as I work out my budget for next month's trip, I'm just hoping it doesn't spike before I can get the travel account(s) sorted.

The Pound hasn't been doing so well either, with the recent political turmoil over there. I just saw it was trading at $1.47 right now. Maybe I don't follow these things too much (until recently), but I've never seen GBP go for anything less than $1.50.

If you all notice the lower foreign currencies go the higher gold prices? A direct correlation there. Less respect for a countries financial condition is always displayed in its currency valuations. So the cash goes somewhere else. Like in gold. So maybe just maybe this onslaught vs the Euro/Pound is not over??????

Euro tumbles on debt woes

High-risk assets including stocks took a hit and worries about the euro zone debt crisis prompted demand for safer investments, pushing gold to a record high while the dollar hit its strongest versus a currency basket in a year.

European authorities announced a massive debt safety net for Greece, Spain and Portugal this week, but investors remain skeptical whether those countries can take the pain of overhauling their poor public finances.

Such uncertainty drove the euro as low as $1.2433 according to Reuters data, its weakest since November 2008, having broken through options barriers at $1.2500 and $1.2450.

As gleeful as Americans are at the fall of the euro against the US dollar, nothing matches the satisfaction of the average Canadian as the US dollar falls against the Canadian dollar. It was briefly at par a while ago and is now not far from it. Oh, happy day for those of us who travel to the US or have to pay for cruises or tours in American dollars.

Spain and Portugal's credit rating cut today as well as announcing 'shocking' pay decreases.

Unions calling for strikes in Spain...

Just in time for our trip to Bilbao on Sunday :)

Sadly, there is a price to my joy in paying less for my coming vacation. The falling euro means increased living costs for all of Europe. It also means less competitiveness for American firms bidding against European firms in the world market place. Both prongs of this pincer probably mean job losses.

No wonder economics is called "The Dismal Science".

Still, my glass of Riesling will be cheaper as I drink to forget the sorrows of my fellow man.

Regards, Gary

So it looks like the recent $1 trillion aid package isn't going to work. Talk of the disintegration of the Euro continues.

Monday will be interesting. Could the Euro be below 1.20 by this time next week. I think so.

I miss the days of having individual currency in different countries. It might be back again. This whole thing must be driving the Germans crazy.

Less than $1.24. Burn, baby, burn need to return to 85 cents per Euro.

Edwin

Yes,, I am very sad about falling Euro and American dollar, I will have to drink an extra glass of wine just to fortify myself before I have to pay my now lower hotel bill in the next few weeks,, ,, sorry, insert evil laugh here.

I know , I know, its not good for some people , but frankly its GREAT for me,, and no, it won't affect us at all in any other way. We lined up our duckies years ago and are safe . Debt and mortgage free is the way to be. Years of camping holidays with our kids instead of nice vacations jet/resort/hotels have finally paid off for us. ( did I mention I do not love camping?)

Now, if Canada could just get our drowning in debt medical system on track things would pretty well be perfect. There is always a fly in the ointment for anyone .

I miss the days of having individual currency in different countries. It might be back again. This whole thing must be driving the Germans crazy.

Couldn't agree more Michael. I'm sure many of these countries are very angry in "engaging" this euro idea. I couldn't understand why they thought unity would work. For nobody agrees on anything today.

"I'm sure many of these countries are very angry in 'engaging' this euro idea. I couldn't understand why they thought unity would work. For nobody agrees on anything today."

An early step in consolidating modern Germany was the Prussian Customs Union, facilitating trade among its members by lowering barriers to trade. I am sure that the European Union was formed with the same goal. An obstacle to trade within Europe was the loss in value of converting currencies. I think the euro was and is a good idea, expanded too far and too fast.

We lived in Germany in the pre-euro days. When we traveled around the continent, we lost money on every currency conversion. I am not sure that I would like a return to those "good ole days".

Regards, Gary

When we traveled around the continent, we lost money on every currency conversion. Kind of like the same feeling/experiences we Americans have been dealing with for many a year now???

Hey Lola,
Tyson is right about B of A having good deals on currency. If you purchase 1K they waive any fee's if you have an account. They also will order money if it isn't something common they have on hand. Such as Thai baht or Malaysian riggets. Good luck and just call your banks to see what they can do for you.
Best,
Angie

"We lived in Germany in the pre-euro days. When we traveled around the continent, we lost money on every currency conversion. I am not sure that I would like a return to those "good ole days"."

I don't get it.

Don't you pay roughly the same exchange fee for indivual currencies? It wouldn't cost more for someone outside the EU, no matter how many currencies they buy into.

Confused.

Michael...it would work out OK if you knew exactly how much of each individual European currency you would need before you left....then you'd get the best exchange rate possible when you purchased them.
But if you, say, cashed a TC in Paris for francs, and didn't spend all your francs, you'd take another hit for exchanging them for, say Deutsche Marks...and another hit if any leftover marks had to be traded in for lira....it was a nightmare.
OF course, for Gary, if he was living in Germany now, could range over most of the continent without having to exchange currencies at all.

The euro, already at a four-year low against the dollar, is likely to go lower. The bold, €750 billion rescue package and broad international collaboration should stabilize European markets and hush the talk of a breakup. Yet that won't stop the currency from careening this year toward the $1.18 level, where it made its 1999 debut.

For a start, the euro's biggest champion -- the European Central Bank -- has caved to political pressure and, among other things, will begin buying sovereign bonds in the market. This transfers the risk of default from fiscally stretched nations like Greece, Portugal and Spain to the euro zone as a whole. And the ECB has to fund it by effectively printing euros, further devaluing the currency.

Thanks Angie, a very informative post: B of A having good deals on currency. If you purchase 1K they waive any fee's if you have an account.

This euro will bottom eventually.... I think it might be time to slowly start buying to fill my travel wallet.

Picking a low is impossible. The Euro is at a 4 yr low vs the dollar. Which is great news for Americans going over to that part of the world. And remember one can easily hedge against any Euro strength by buying the FXE. If the Euro climbs vs the dollar this will help nullify the dollar loss exchange. The FXE is down (as I type) 13.87% vs the American dollar so far this year.

"Yes,, I am very sad about falling Euro and American dollar, I will have to drink an extra glass of wine just to fortify myself before I have to pay my now lower hotel bill in the next few weeks,, ,, sorry, insert evil laugh here."

Don't mess with the currency gods:

Canadian Dollar Still on the Slide

Posted by Scott Boyd at 9:10 am EDT, 05/20/2010

Worries that the Greek debt crisis could spread to other European countries, has caused the Canadian dollar to fall almost four cents to its US counterpart in the past week. The dollar was worth about 94.22 cents US Thursday morning in New York, down 1.55 cents from the close on Wednesday.

Investors are worried that a prolonged recession in Europe could lower demand for energy and other resource commodities. This could potentially affect the country directly as Canada is a major commodities exporter.

Source: The Canadian Press

Now all business and commerce are going to suffer and fall of the earth due to this Euro crisis? Does anybody really listen to such trash talk? These are speculators talking who'd sell their mothers shoes to make a fast buck. Europe has its financial problems alike the USA. But that doesn't imply we're all going to die broke. Maybe someday, but not right now.

Haha, Michael! Considering our dollar has been as low as 64 cents, U.S. in the recent past, we're still laughing. "Investors," as usual, don't know what they're talking about! We seem to have been the only industrialized country not to suffer a meltdown during the latest crisis....our banks remained solid, mortgages continued to be handed out at a record rate, houses are still being built faster than ever. And when are "investors" going to figure out that we don't sell our energy and raw materials to Europe? The U-S buys about 70% of our oil and natural gas, and our minerals are being purchased by China and India as fast as we can get them out of the ground!

Lost another penny today.

I think you Canucks had better stop spooking then currency gods. Leave the arrogance to us Americans.