Christmas Shopping

On Cup Tuesday, the RBA will put Aussie interest rates up. This will mean that the AUD rises against the pound. In the UK, a lot of people buy their xmas presents online. In Australia, you can import up to $1000 worth of mail order stuff in a single shipment.

Exchange rate is currently 1.8 but will drop.. see here

www.google.com/webhp?hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:&gws_rd=ssl*&q=gbp+to+aud&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g10

I would suggest

www.amazon.co.uk for books
www.wiggle.co.uk for sports gear

and if it's small and shippable...

www.specialisedsailing.com/

Hey Ginger Pom - With your passion for this topic you should go into a business importing the gear and playing the exchange rates. Make a fortune and pay for your windsurfing gear

Crowie - you need to devise a way of sending the OZ$ into a nosedive so you can make a killing on the exchange rate. Take K Rudd out with the new board into shark infested waters might be a start

The UK government just decided not to chuck anymore stimulus money out,
which has reduced the future uncertainty over the UK's money-printing inflation, which would tend to make the pound rise against the aussie dollar.

Which effect is more powerful is hard to say, but the last AUD % increase seemed to do little to nothing

Also the current exchange rate is the lowest its been since 1985

have a look at this google finance graph, this is pretty cool:

www.google.com/search?q=GBP+to+AUD&gws_rd=ssl

I'm not going to call the bottom of a market but i suspect its now going the other way and nows your best moment to strike.

Anyway the bigger financial shocks potentially on the way
(according to 'Doomers') are:
1. China stops raw material stockpiling and commodities and so AUD plummets
2. The global reinflation of the asset price bubble since 2007 bursts when everone wakes up, pushing us all into a W recession ala 1930
3. We reach Peak Oil and so freeze, starve, riot and die and then have to all grow our own veg.

God i thought i was coming on here to see where everyone was sailing i the southerlies now the weekends forecast has picked up !

This is a tough one for me because I have a foot in both camps...

I agree about supporting the local shops. It really is important and you also get after sales service and warrantee issues are a lot easier to deal with on a local basis.

however if you are looking at a strong AUD and prices on Maui for second hand boards I can really understand the frustration. Anything s/h on Maui is cheap!!

If you sail JP or Starboard etc... , there is no point taking it out on the shops, prices are set by manufacturers, importers and the retail shops need to add their cut. If we have issues in our market why not vent our frustration at the manufacturer directly...

Personally I sail Hawaiian brand sails.... part of it is price orientated but mainly because of the quality of the product. Also while on Maui I can get to talk to the people who design the sails. They don't spend big $$ on advertising, however they put a lot of time and money into R+D and make a great product at a good price... the down side is if something goes wrong you don't have the support from the local shop. In my eyes a risk worth taking.

BTW while on Maui I'm trying out a demo carbon boom and so far am thinking of buying it (FYI < USD600 for a new carbon boom) - funny thing is it's not for the price but the design of the curve profile.... luckily I can buy it guilt free because no one in Australia stock it

FYI

the new X9 boom has not arrived at Maui yet however when they arrive they will range from USD900-1200. based on that, add freight etc... local looks like the best option.

Thanks Ginger Pom and I fully support your campaign!

I guess in Australia we end up paying a lot more for things... e.g. internet broadband, slower speeds and high prices!