The Euro Is Weakening, Here’s How You Benefit

I took my first trip to Europe in 1985.

I was 16 years old and had saved up my dollars for more than six months to pay for the 30-day, 9-country tour.

While I understood that every country I’d be visiting used a different currency, I didn’t realize that the U.S. dollar was at an extreme high against most currencies around the world at that time. It was accidental but fortunate timing, as it made the trip affordable for me.

It wasn’t until 13 years later that currency fluctuations significantly impacted my life again.

When Kathleen and I moved to Ireland, the currency was the Irish punt. The euro was introduced a year later at fixed rates of exchange against the 12 currencies it initially replaced. For several years, the Irish required prices in store windows and on restaurant menus, for example, to be shown in both punts and euro. People had to get used to the new money.

The exchange rate between the euro and the U.S. dollar started at US$1.16…and it fell from there. It bottomed out at 84 cents and remained below its US$1.16 launch point for four-and-a-half years.

The euro continued to appreciate for five years after breaking through the US$1.16 mark, eventually reaching US$1.59.

From 84 cents to US$1.59… a near double.

Today the euro is hovering around 98 cents.

I got lucky in 1985 when I took advantage of the strength of the U.S. dollar and embarked on my first tour of Europe.

Today, again, I and every other dollar-holder find ourselves in an extremely fortunate position.

But, this time, my plans as a result are not at all accidental.

I’m aggressively targeting investment opportunities to take advantage of the weak euro.

Indeed, I’m shopping sterling opportunities, as well… as the U.S. dollar is trading against the British pound in the same range as back in 1985… 37 years ago. The pound’s high in those 37 years was US$2.06… almost double its US$1.06 low in 1985.

For me, buying euro– and pound-priced hard assets right now is an urgent agenda. I don’t want to miss what qualifies as the currency window of our lifetimes.

I’ve never tried to predict currency movements. The only thing I can tell you with certainty is that, eventually, the U.S. dollar will weaken against the euro and the pound. No one can say for sure… though many will try.

I’ll suggest only that we’ll likely continue to enjoy this buying advantage through the first quarter of 2023.

I’ve just closed on buys in Spain and Northern Cyprus… I am renovating a property in Croatia… and I am shopping in Montenegro and Ireland.

In this month’s Simon Letter, I detail one particularly appealing investment option in Malta.

And my second annual Global Property Index features six other euro-denominated markets where I recommend you take a close look… right now.

Lief Simon