How a Trump election victory could be good for Aussie travellers

AS unlikely as a Trump victory may seem, there is a silver lining for Aussies if he manages to get into the White House.

Stranger things. No-one thought Britain would vote to leave the EU either. Picture: Getty Images/AFP/Drew Angerer

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A TRUMP victory at the US presidential election could have a significant silver lining for Australian travellers, with the prediction the greenback will plunge giving Aussies more buying power in North America.

Exchange rate analysts predict our currency could soar to over 90 cents against the US dollar, leading to savings of 15 to 20 per cent for Australians visiting the US.

In the last year, more than a million Aussies made the trans-Pacific journey, making the US our third favourite overseas destination after New Zealand and Indonesia.

The prediction of a currency plunge is not overly fanciful, given Donald Trump’s performance in the polls has even influenced the dollar’s strength, climbing to 77 US cents during the campaign from 74.5.

US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Picture: AFP

Joy Seng from the Currency Shop, said it was clear just the idea of Trump moving into the White House was increasing volatility and market risk.

“You only have to look at Brexit to see what an unexpected result can do to the national currency,” said Ms Seng.

“In that case, the British Pound immediately slumped and is now trading at its lowest level in 168-years.”

But she said that had benefited tourists visiting the UK, making travel nearly 30 per cent cheaper than at the same time last year.

“If by any chance Donald Trump wins the election, the same thing could happen in the US,” Ms Seng said.

“The US dollar will weaken and the exchange rate with the Australian dollar will rise higher, meaning travellers would receive more US dollars for the same amount of Australian dollars.”

Commsec chief economist Craig James said financial markets were expressing caution about a Trump presidency as he was an “outsider to the political process”.

Wanderlust. Aussies could soon have more spending power in the US.

“A Clinton presidency would be viewed as “more of the same”,” said Mr James.

“As such, relief rallies are possible on global sharemarkets.”

General Manager of Travel Money Oz, Dion Jensen said his advice to anyone planning a US trip, would be to consider their currency needs and decide whether to lock in an exchange rate now.

“In June we saw the Brexit vote impact immediately on international currency markets with British pound notes in short supply as travellers rushed to buy the currency,” Mr Jensen said.

“We don’t have a crystal ball but we know that many travellers prefer to have certainty.”

Ms Seng said even if Trump lost, there was an indication the Aussie dollar would move higher.

“In the last couple of weeks, Trump’s campaign suffered significant setbacks, particularly before the final debate and with the leaked video,” she said.

“On both occasions the Australian dollar moved higher against the US dollar.”