Dolar Between 35 and 40?

Short term: Dollar could fall even further.
Medium term: Dollar will rise to 60 and beyond.

IMF money will not buy stability in a country run by incompetents (to be nice). Half the money will be used to pay debt in or near default as of today (power and international loans). The other half will be used towards reelection and will end up in pockets. Within a few weeks, the money will be gone, and the Great Peso Slide will start up again.

Then, if history tells, the IMF will give Hippo more money just as his campaign fund starts to run dry.

Even with the IMF agreement, the country will be short 300 million dollars that it will need this year alone in order to meet financial obligations. This gap will put more pressure on the peso. Be skeptical of these pronouncements that the dollar is going down, specially when there are none to be found.

Peso at 70 to 1 in Miami airport ICE offices.....

....Friday....and you can find 5,000 dollars worth if you want. There appears to be some private sources in the DR to get 5,000-10,000 dollars but exchance is in mid 50's....but is better than 70...and at least you can find some.

I told one bank the other day they ought to close down the sell rate since they won't sell any dollars...just buy.

Imf

Tried to induce the economy before, will not work, peso will rise again no doubt in my mind.
There is too much corruption behind the scenes and the pockets will be filled and lined with US$'s again.




? Hlywud

The foreign exchange system in the DR is a sham!!

There is no free market for the exchange rate in the DR. Do not believe anything you read/hear from Malkum/Mejia until you can buy US$/$EUR just as easily as you can sell them. When the exchange rate "falls to 40", but you cannot buy US$...then the real exchange rate is not 40. You are just being suckered/strong armed into selling your US$ cheaply.

If the exchange rate market in the DR were a truly free market, then there would be no hoarding og US$ allowed. The exchange houses and banks would have to set a buy/sell price where just as many people want to buy US$ as want to sell US$. That has not happened in the DR for a long time.

If no one has been selling US$ for over a year now, then where are these US$ going?
1) Are these exchange houses and banks buying them from you at 40 then turn around and sell some of them to importers for 55? I think so.

2) Are these exchange houses and banks buying them from you and then turn aournd and hand over a good portioni of them to Mejia? I think so.


BOTTOM LINE: when the exchange rate "falls", its just an excuse to take money from you little guys and form importers and hand it over to exchange houses and banks and of course Mejia.

when i arrive in the DR, where should i exchange my US$ dollars for pesos? how much money do i need to take a bus from the airport to the colonial district?(where i plan to stay)

should i hold on to my US money as long as possible?

I arrive Wednesday with some of the same questions. I guess that the "only change as much as you need for that day" caveat still applies, but this is beginning to look like I need to market time my exchanges while I'm there. Is it possible that the cambios here stateside (ie airports) are giving a better rate than in country? I guess I'm hoping that somebody isn't able to stay on top of the changes. Or am I nuts?

Rate to sell dollars better in DR than at ICE in Miami....

They were only giving 39 pesos for a dollar on Friday. Much better than that in the DR.

Joel, there is no bus from airport to Colonial Zone. You will need to take a taxi, many of which are waiting outside the terminal. Change your money at banks or bancos de cambio, not with the money changers roaming the streets. No matter what rate they quote, avoid them. they have many ways to cheat unsuspecting visitors like yourself.

bcmike, we can report what the current exchange rate is and what we think is going to happen, but we can't guarantee a thing. If you read this board you will know that most resident posters think the exchange rate is not going to fall much below 40 to 1 and that the dollar will strengthen once the big infusion of money is committed to pay off loans, pay the power providers, etc. After that is done, the country will still be facing huge debt that must be paid in the future, thus it is thought that the rate of exchange will move back toward 50 to 1. If you are just coming for a week's visit, you don't need to think much about this. If you are coming for an extended stay, then just change what you think you need for a few days at a time.

"Then, if history tells, the IMF will give Hippo more money just as his campaign fund starts to run dry."

A friend once remarked that the IMF is like a "doctor giving an alcoholic a new liver AND a barrel of rum."