Exchange Rate Now!

Just when everyone thought that we had recovered from the global financial crisis which started in late 2008, the Dow Jones, NASDAQ and S&P 500 are now reeling from a long overdue aftermath and plunged in late Feb 2010.

The direct impact on forex led the a spike in US Dollar against major currencies like the Euro and the Japanese Yen. The hope is now on the drop in unemployment rate to stabilise the economy and bring back the much needed confidence into the stock markets around the world and as a result bring more predictability into the forex market.

As at 6 Feb 2010, the US Dollar was trading at 

1 U.S. dollar = 0.733460466 Euros

or  Euro = 1.3634 U.S. dollars. Nowhere near the levels last seen in Dec 2008 but surely a worrying sign even for USA, as a appreciating US Dollar may hamper exports and put a damper on economic growth.

Adding more complexity to the equation is the result concern on European debts. Countries in European Union (EU) like Greece, Romania, Spain, Portugal, Turkey and other countries in Europe like Iceland still could not shake off the stigma of an imminent collapse in financial system. If this scenario truly materialize in the Eurozone, it could lead to (more…)

One of the best thing about traveling overseas is VISA. Having a VISA credit card allows you to reduce the physical cash to bring when traveling. In addition, when situation arises when you need to spend more than you have budgeted for, your can always use VISA. You do not need to go to a money changer to make purchase in your destination country. Finally, you can immediately call and deactivate your VISA credit card if you have lost your valuables/wallet through theft or forgetfulness.

There is actually another hidden benefit of using VISA. The exchange rate, when making purchase using VISA, is (more…)

Besides the physical proximity, there is also something between the United States and Canada that is near to each other - the currencies of both Canada and the United States trade at near parity. Currently, the Canadian Dollar (CAD, also informally known as the “Loonie”) is trading at 92.78 US. Cents (or 1 US Dollar compared to 1.078 Canadian Dollar). At this level, this is one of the best exchange rate for the Canadian Dollar against the US dollar (USD) since Oct 2008.

In fact, against the U.S. dollar in July 2009, Canada is THE best performer amongst the 16 most-active currencies tracked by Bloomberg, gaining a whooping 7.6 percent. This means a 7.6% increase in purchasing power for Canadian tourist travelling to United States!

The Canadian Dollar forecast to be more expensive that the US Dollar in the medium term due to several factors and trend:

1. A greater risk appetite resulting from the recovery of the global financial crisis helped bolster the commodity-linked Canadian Dollar, where raw materials account for more than half of the country’s export revenue (more…)