A New Low For The Dollar

The reason for my odd posting time and few if that in the last couple days is because on vacation and have only a moment here and there to write. I'm blessed to be sitting on a 2nd story balcony looking at a castle down the street from me that happens to sit on the Bay of Napoli. We're here till tomorrow and then up to Rome for three days. So I can say with certainty that the U.S. dollar completely sucks against the Euro. The exchange rate may be $1.60 (remember when it was 82 cents?) but with fees it comes out to roughly three Euros for every five dollars. I'm lucky to be able to spend a few of them here and there, but it is definitely noticeable for this American.

From RawStory:

The euro rose as high as $1.6018, more than a penny above the $1.5916 it bought late Monday. The 15-nation currency, which was introduced in 1999, has traded as low as 82 cents. It has surged recently, rising 20 cents against the dollar in just five months and 10 cents in just two months.

The euro hit its last record of $1.5982 Thursday. It dropped back Friday after a Wall Street rally generated optimism that the worst of the U.S. credit crunch may be over, but the euro rose again Monday when Bank of America's first-quarter earnings fell short of expectations.

The dollar's slump is a boon for U.S. companies that rely heavily on exports, but it's the bane of travelers as worldwide inflation rises, air fares climb and prices rise in dollar terms for everything from beer in Munich to fine wine in Paris to gondola rides in Venice.

And in between the price of a pizza, a Smart Car rental and the price of train tickets are also up, as I can tell you from personal experience. Thankfully though, the pack of gum I bought was only 70 cents euro so that was about market rate and the wireless connection at the hotel is free, so I guess not everything is bad.

I'm just waiting to get rid of George Bush and we can finally start setting our economy straight, and get these damn currencies straightened out.