LAM

Does this mean exchange rate will get worse?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7130443.stm

Nursebank

If you are holding sterling and planning to emigrate soon, get out of it now, today, because with these jokers in charge of our destiniy in terms of the Bank of Corrupt England, then you could well see sterling fall further, if or when they decide to cut further next year?

The way i see it, is Oz rates going up, ours going down, you could well see 1 pound to 2.2 dollars in the next six months, sterling could be something you would use to blow your nose on if Gordon has his way?

JoolsB

Thats the effect it normally has. Higher interest rates attract investment in a currency strengthening it & lower interest rates do the opposite. But who can really say for sure-it;s all so volatile right now.

rockpeblar

Great news - should mean lower monthly mortgage repayments on our house in the UK.

british whinger

its all a ploy to calm everyone down.

we should see another cut, then stability and wiser thinking in the market. and from consumers.

I think banks, and retailers have tested the market to see how much money they can extort from Jo public, they have found the markets maximum spend now, so things will balance out.

profit targets will be realigned to what can now be achieved realisitically, just watch everyones targets over xmas be under forecasted, or what the OE target was.....

Nursebank

I don't think this image is appropriate.

One of these men is a thoroughly corrupt and evil excuse for a human being who has bankrupted his country, allowed inflation to soar, manipulated the people through relentless use of propaganda and turned his nation into a police state.

And the other one is the President of Zimbabwe.

NikiL

A lot of it has to do with the US dollar weakness - the aussie dollar is very strongly linked to the USD. The other factor is comparative interest rates, the drop today makes the aussie dollar more attractive, therefore you get less bucks for your pound because more people want it to invest.

bcworld

...ok you've clearly got a bee in your bonnet....can you supply some evidence of this bankrupt UK and 'soaring' UK inflation? And if inflation bothers you that much stay in the UK, cos the rate of inflation is about 1.5times higher here.

NikiL

Now soaring inflation, that really is the Zimbabwean domain - I heard a little while ago of golfers buying the round of drinks after 9 holes because by the time they'd finished the prices had gone up again! Could be urban myth, but entirely feasible. Makes 2-3% look like nothing, which really it is. Without inflation the economy stagnates, its just the balancing act between inflation and interest rates that I wouldn't want to have to do

bcworld

Yes inflation in Zimbabwe in somewhere in the region of 7000-10000%, although Mugabe will argue that this is somehow Blair / UK's fault - I'm sure some posters here will find a way to agree as well!

renth

With an Aussie rate hike mooted for Feb I'm just glad I got my cash over when I did. You are only going to get fewer Aussie dollars for your pound, it's only going to get worse IMO.

themerlin

I remeber when I went there on holiday, it as about 1 pound = $ZIM20
Not it's something like 1,000,000

themerlin

OK so was the average African better off under white/UK rule ?
(Opens can of worms and runs away)

Swerv-o

Yes, listening to ABC this morning, the economists are suggesting that Australian interest rates may need to go as high as 9.3% within the next year to cool inflationary pressures.

It will be interesting to see what sort of effect this has on the housing markets. If you are planning to get a mortgage, then I think it would be best to factor a worst case scenario of 10-11% when looking it affordability.


S

bcworld

No need for the can of worms...in the case of the average Zimbabwean I think the answer is clearly yes - I'm talking recent history here not colonial British ruled Zimbabwe. Whether or not that is due to who is running the country or just unfortunate circumstances is another matter.