Aussie Dollar surge a window of opportunity for travellers

The Australian dollar made a surprising comeback today to US72.34 since Friday’s figures at US71.99. This boost marks a new opportunity for travellers to lock in their travel money, as the dollar is tipped to fall again.

FXCM chief currency strategist John Kicklighter, told smh.com.au on Friday that ultimately the Australian dollar was beholden to the fortunes of commodity prices. And as smh.com.au reported, this means the AU dollar would struggle to rise again soon. 

Other experts agreed this is indeed an unusual burst for the Australian dollar, and advised not to count on it getting any higher. OM Financial senior client advisor Stuart Ive told The Australian this morning he was surprised the dollar rose at all. 

“We’re tapped on the upside; we’ve had a good two day rally,” he said. 

Given the AU dollar surge is expected to dip lower soon, travellers should act fast if they wish to lock in their funds before it’s too late. If you’re heading to the US sometime soon, a prepaid credit card is a good bet for getting the most out of your funds for the trip. 

At the current exchange rate at midday, $2,000 Australian dollars would amount to $1446 in US dollars. But if you waited and the dollar dropped to just US65, as predicted by economists, you would only receive around $1300 - $146 less. 

There are plenty of prepaid travel cards to stash some savings in before jetsetting which lock in the dollar rate. The best way to do this is to take advantage of Mozo’s prepaid card section and compare what exchange rates providers are offering now.