The end is near, Saudis opt for EUROS over Bush Bucks

[DainBramaged]

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/trade/2005-02-21-soros-dollar_x.htm?POE=MONISVA

<snip>
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, — Moves by Middle East oil exporters and Russia to switch some revenue from dollars to euros lie behind the U.S. currency's weakness, and a further rise in crude prices could prompt more declines, billionaire investor George Soros said Monday. Soros told delegates to the Jeddah Economic Forum that the dollar's fall should help to lower the U.S current account and trade deficits, but warned that a fall beyond an unknown "tipping point" would severely disrupt markets.

The U.S. current account deficit is more than five percent of gross domestic product despite the dollar's three-year slide. The currency, however, has staged a comeback recently, gaining about 3.6% against the euro and three percent versus the yen this year.

"The oil exporting countries' central banks ... have been switching out of dollars mainly into euros, and Russia also plays an important role in this. That is, I think, at the bottom of the current weakness of the dollar," Soros said.

<snip>

I can't wait to see how the BFEE spins this one. * goes to play footsie with Europe and his 'friends' the Saudis twist the knife into the backs of the poor and middle class as oil prices climb again into record territory this year.

[mattclearing]

1. They know that the Bushes are out to bankrupt us.

And then the Saudis and the other financiers of the federal deficit can foreclose on Saudi America.

:D

[Kerrytravelers]

2. Should I start keeping my money under my matress?

[DainBramaged]

3. I'm thinking of beads and sea shells as an alternative.

[rkc3]

4. If not under your mattress - put your 401k money into foreign investments.

[Dhalgren]

5. Or buy gold - that's what a wacko friend mine of insists upon...

[rkc3]

7. Ahhhh Gold - it's at its highest in 10 years - it can only go up from here

Your friend probably doesn't believe the NASDAQ bubble ever happened either.

[mattclearing]

12. Good move.

Gold is valuable with or without a government to vouch for it.

If that's wacko, you should talk to any of the major investment banks and the Federal Reserve.

[KansDem]

8. Yeah! But convert your $$$ into Euros before you do!

Otherwise you might wind up with just...matress stuffing.

[cestpaspossible]

10. You can save euros if you want

http://www.everbank.com

[PROGRESSIVE1]

6. .

[drummer55]

9. remember to educate yourself in all things.

http://www.fame.org/HTM/Vieira_Edwin_What_is_a_Dollar_EV-002.HTM

[Muddy Waters Guitar]

11. Putin knows exactly where to hurt us most

and he's already twisting the knife. He's never forgiven us for what Russians feel is mucking around in Russia's backyard (those bases in the former Central Asian republics), not to mention Kosovo, and Bush's blundering in Iraq has given him an ideal opportunity. With this amount of debt we're acutely vulnerable as never before.

Though the Cold War has undoubtedly thawed, a lot of the bitterness remains (e.g. many Russians I've met cite one of their country's proudest periods as their support of the NVA and VietCong, when "we humiliated you Americans in the eyes of the world"). And with the unilateral invasion of Iraq and now stirrings to invade Iran, Putin's worried about US-based encirclement. He sees a movement to the Euro as one of the best ways to deny us the foreign investment that the country needs to fuel this industrial pace (which in turns helps fuel military spending), and with the ongoing Iraq fiasco, Putin senses blood in the water. He may not be the most likable fellow but he's no fool-- he knows exactly what he's doing.