Europeans Feeling The Pinch

[PattayaPhom]

Noticed recently than many Europeans are not spending as much, just looked at the XE for the Euro...couldnt believe how low against the Baht it is...saw 37 in Bureau de Change...oouch that must be hurting...anyone else noticed the same?

[William Osborne]

i think its painfully obvious to most people how bad the EX rate is but no point thinking about it too much... end of the day, you have how much baht you have, so budget on that ... obviously hurts abit more if you are shelling out for house or new truck .

[luckyluke]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

[seasia]

Euro not currently in favour, very weak against the US $ also.

[phl]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

[JaiLai]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

Don't ever recall it being 82 in 2006??

[phl]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

Don't ever recall it being 82 in 2006??

i do, because i was here after my trip to UK and did change money in BKK and it was 82, unless of course i am mixing up years+1/-1 year

[JaiLai]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

Don't ever recall it being 82 in 2006??

i do, because i was here after my trip to UK and did change money in BKK and it was 82, unless of course i am mixing up years+1/-1 year

Ok, i have been here about 11 year, most i got was about 71 i think. Wish i'd used the same place as you - oh well.....

[Darrel]

The highest official international rate over the last 10 years was just under 77B, but it could well have been slightly higher inside the country for cash.

[Asiantravel]

this is only Act 1 Scene 1

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article34625.html

[Toxane]

GBP had a spike in January 1998: 86.0441

[meatballs]

Seems unusually quiet around town.

[Darrel]

GBP had a spike in January 1998

That was the famous crash.

Some relics in the form of largely derelict condo buildings and commercial centres are still highly visible in the Jomtien area, and indeed down towards Rayong.

[maxman71]

To add to Asiantravel's post, we are witnessing, and are still in the middle innings of, the financial crash. Nothing has been really solved and the political will of any of the involved countries save for maybe Germany to bite the bullet and let all the unimaginable levels of debt destruct and be cleansed, just isn't there.

What I foresee will be massive and coordinated money printing by all the Western countries' central banks, save perhaps for Australia, which would be more minimal. China may also join in this further creation of funny money. The result? Increased commodity price inflation world wide. This doesn't mean the real underlying productive economies of these countries will improve, but it will make the banking cartels and traders on Wall Street, London, etc. a lot money. Rothchild has been quoted as saying, "Give me control over a country's money and I care not who makes its' laws." I think we've seen this manifested all too bluntly.

Until all this comes to pass, the USD (ex-the Aussie $) will be the tallest guy at a dwarf tossing contest in terms of appreciation vs. most other currencies.

[thaibeachlovers]

GBP had a spike in January 1998: 86.0441

Best exchange rate I ever saw in LOS was 91 to GBP in late 90s. Unfortunately I'd cashed all my Sterling just after the devaluation when it went from 45 to 46 or something like that. I rarely win on forex!!!!

[thaibeachlovers]

To add to Asiantravel's post, we are witnessing, and are still in the middle innings of, the financial crash. Nothing has been really solved and the political will of any of the involved countries save for maybe Germany to bite the bullet and let all the unimaginable levels of debt destruct and be cleansed, just isn't there.

What I foresee will be massive and coordinated money printing by all the Western countries' central banks, save perhaps for Australia, which would be more minimal. China may also join in this further creation of funny money. The result? Increased commodity price inflation world wide. This doesn't mean the real underlying productive economies of these countries will improve, but it will make the banking cartels and traders on Wall Street, London, etc. a lot money. Rothchild has been quoted as saying, "Give me control over a country's money and I care not who makes its' laws." I think we've seen this manifested all too bluntly.

Until all this comes to pass, the USD (ex-the Aussie $) will be the tallest guy at a dwarf tossing contest in terms of appreciation vs. most other currencies.

Considering that no one seems to have a clue as to how to sort the problem, other than moaning about how people won't go out and spend ( ie buy rubbish consumer goods ) I don't have any faith that things will improve any time soon.

Best quote I saw on tv was someone saying that there won't be any warning when the poo really hits the fan, and it will happen overnight ( or words to that effect ).

So long as the world we live in exists by having people spend money on pointless things just for the sake of buying "stuff", we will never come right. Look at Japan, 20 years in the dumps and no solution in sight.

If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, then we live in insane times.

Perhaps it's time for a different way.

[PattayaPhom]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

Not asking about Sterling, thats levelled out..its the Euro that has dived recently and I have noticed many Europeans cutting back on their expenditure, just wondered if others with friends or businesses had noticed the same as I had

[meatballs]

It just keeps going down. Pattaya will be a ghost town very soon.

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=EURTHB=X&t=5y&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=

[Asiantravel]

[Asiantravel]

The euro has fallen to an 11-year low against the Japanese yen amid fears that debt problems in Spain are

worsening.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18949911

[Spalpeen]

It just keeps going down. Pattaya will be a ghost town very soon.

http://finance.yahoo...l=on&z=m&q=l&c=

I don't think that Pattaya will ever be a ghost town. Europeans, Americans, Russians, Arabs, Chinese....their fortunes will go up and down but there will always be a market for what Pattaya has to sell.

[Tolley]

GFC2 is coming and it is going to be a lot worse than GFC1.

The bubble just keeps getting bigger and sooner or later it is all going to burst.

Too many countries addicted to debt and unable to service that debt.

Japan is in dire trouble and could go belly up anytime. 50 percent of tax revenue goes towards servicing debt and that is with zero interest rates.

Add the euro crisis,a stuttering US economy and a China slowdown and the portents are indeed very gloomy.

[pattayadingo]

Many many places are now a lot quieter. We cut our cloth to suit, so not so many nights out or not spending so much, that seems common sense.

One or two places have reduced the price of a beer by 5 baht a bottle. Another I know of offers 2 for 1 before 10 p.m. These places are quite busy. Other places have closed.

Until some realise there are financial problems outside of their own little worlds they are going to get less custom unless they too cut their cloth to suit and reduce some prices.

As someone else mentioned, the coconut girls are cheaper too. No bar fine

[Theboy]

GBP had a spike in January 1998: 86.0441

Best exchange rate I ever saw in LOS was 91 to GBP in late 90s. Unfortunately I'd cashed all my Sterling just after the devaluation when it went from 45 to 46 or something like that. I rarely win on forex!!!!

Beat me there, I manged 90 to the GBP but only had a hundred quid on me at the time - fell back the following day, dam_n

[happyaussie]

Why waste energy reminiscing about the "good" old days. I'm sure we can all remember when everything was cheaper no matter where in the world you come from.

If you think the Euro ad Pound are doing it tough spare a thought for us Aussies. We've been floating around the 30bht to the dollar exchange rate for years.

We're still here, still spending and still having fun.

Guess what, prices will continue to increase, as will standards of living for Thais. If it's price that determines your destination of choice. Try Cambodia or perhaps Vietnam.

Me, I love Thailand and am happy to pay more. Regardless of the exchange rate. Just wish they'd change visa and ownership laws.

[JakeBKK]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

That time the euro was between 49 and 52

[phl]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

That time the euro was between 49 and 52

and?

[marstons]

GBP had a spike in January 1998: 86.0441

Rememeber it well my first trip to LOS, actually got just over 90 some days, could also park my hire car on Bangla road, Phuket and go in bars for a beer. Times change.

[PattayaPhom]

The Pound was worth +/- 67 ThB in July 2007, ouch that must be hurting, anyone noticed?

In 2006 it was 82, feel the REAL pain now?

That time the euro was between 49 and 52

and?

Because its obvious its a sore point with Luke it was a reply to his statement. Ive had yet another European that must rent their property in Pattaya in order to move their inlaws as they are struggling with the current downfall in XE

[Barack]

As we all reminisce about "the good old days" after the Asian economic crisis when our western currencies had some buying, we should also reflect about the days prior to the crisis. The USD was around 25 and GBP around 38 for many years. Sad as it seems, as western currencies decline and Asia rises we may look back on the current exchange rates as the "good old days".