Weekly Currency Note - 28th November 2008

Smart Currency Exchange - Weekly Currency Rates for Overseas Property Buyers

Weekly Currency Interbank Exchange Rates 28st November 2008

Currency Rate Last Week Rate This Week EURO 1.180 1.209 US$ 1.479 1.533 CAN$ 1.901 1.903 AUS$ 2.368 2.349 NZD 2.797 2.794 AED 5.434 5.644 CHF 1.811 1.868 ZAR(Rand) 15.735 15.564 Charles's Thoughts:  Sterling made steady gains throughout the week against the US$ and the €, owing more to issues within the American and European economies rather than from anything positive from recent UK market data. The pre-budget speech by Alistair Darling on Monday did little to move sterling on the markets. However, one mildly positive note was the release from Nationwide on Thursday of house prices falling less than was expected over the past month. The upside potential for sterling is quite possibly limited by the prospect of another aggressive cut in interest rates from the Bank of England next week. Should the base rate be slashed by 2%, down to 1% as some suspect may be the case, sterling may well find itself losing significant ground once more this year. Even if the reduction is smaller, the downside risk is still significant. A US$800bn dollar stimulus package announced by the Federal Reserve on Tuesday saw the US$ continue to weaken across the board. This again reminded the world that despite its recent popularity as a low-risk asset, shortcomings within the financial sector in the US will continue to impact the value of the US$ for some time to come. The American markets were on holiday for Thanksgiving and, despite weak data being released consistently over the week, losses against the euro were pared back by weak European data on Friday. A stimulus package from the ECB was outlined midweek. Much like the reaction to the Federal Reserve’s package, the € lost ground against most major currencies. The € also lost further ground across the board at the end of the week, largely thanks to lowering consumer and business confidence as well as poor inflation data. This has heightened expectations that the ECB will also be forced to cut interest rates aggressively in next month’s meeting. There was no considerable movement on the high yield and/or commodity backed currencies against sterling this week. Why is Currency Management So Important? Using a bank could cost you £3-4,000 per £100,000 transferred. Buying at the "wrong" time could cost you many £'000's more as rates can move as much as 3% in a very short period of time. Then add in transfer costs that the banks charge for sending and receiving funds and you could be looking at additional costs of £10,000 per £100,000 transferred. By developing a currency strategy and by working with a specialist currency broker these losses could be minimised if not eliminated. Smart Client Testimonial: "Thank you for making our transactions go so smoothly. As promised, our account was opened within hours. Your traders were pleasant and efficient, and each transaction was very much at the exchange rate I expected...ie not a million miles away from the inter-bank rates and certainly much better than my high street bank could quote. All in all, an easy experience and we will have absolutely no hesitation in recommending your services to any of our friends buying property abroad." Ian Pritchard If you haven't opened a Smart account yet, call me on freephone 0808 163 0102 or fill out our online Account Form at: http://www.SmartCurrencyExchange.com/application.htm How much will a Property Cost? To estimate the cost of a property simply DIVIDE the price of the property by the appropriate rate noted above. But note this is based on the inter bank rate so the actual cost will be slightly more. Charles Purdy Smart Resources Currency Strategy Worksheet Need help creating a Currency Strategy? Download our Currency Strategy Worksheet: http://www.smartcurrencyexchange.com/downloads/CurrencyStrategyWorksheet.pdf Currency Report Have your read our 10-page Currency Report that outlines the top 3 mistakes that overseas buyers make when exchanging and transferring their money overseas? Get the report here: http://www.SmartCurrencyExchange.com/downloads/ThreeMistakes.pdf Currency Quotation Are you interested in a currency rate for Euros, US$'s, CYP, NZD, or any other currency, please fill out our Smart quotation form at: http://www.SmartCurrencyExchange.com/smartquotation.htm Smart Currency Exchange Limited

email: Charles@SmartCurrencyExchange.com free phone: 0808 163 0102 web: http://www.SmartCurrencyExchange.com

Smart Currency Exchange | 1 Hammersmith Grove | Hammersmith | London | W6 0NB | UK © 2005-2008 Copyright  Smart Currency Exchange Ltd THIS PUBLICATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE ADVICE WITHIN THE TERMS OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES ACT (OR ANY SUBSEQUENT REVISIONS, ADDITIONS, OR AMENDMENTS). Disclaimer Exchange rates can move very quickly. The above rates are the interbank rates and valid at a moment in time. The interbank rate is the rate at which the banks deal with each other in the foreign exchange markets. Suggestions should not be taken as advice or fact. The market does what it wants to do.  We have no crystal ball and as ever we suggest that if an exchange rate works for your budget then don't try and wait for an even better exchange rate, as Murphy's Law says the rate will go against you and cause you maximum trouble!

---

SCE/OGC

1 Hammersmith Grove
London, London
W6 0NB
GB


If you no longer wish to receive communication from us:
Cancel

To update your contact information:
Update