With everything about the economy being as dire as it is now it is infrequent that good news comes out where money is involved, so when it does I feel compelled to document it.

The pound is currently very weak against the dollar. This must be bad, you would think from the phrasing. Weak is generally perceived to mean not good, but it can be beneficial. If you are selling goods or services in USD then you will receive more GBP for your dollar.

In June of this year you would get £1 for every $2. Today you will get £1 for every $1.50. So, if I was to receive $200 from a client and convert it to pounds, in June I would have received £100 but now I will get £133.

This is particularly important for me as I do freelance programming and a lot of my work comes from across the pond in the United States. Paypal does the converting from dollars to pounds and with it being as it is right now, I am earning approximately 1/3 more than I was 6 months ago.

Of course, it’s the total reverse if you’re converting your money from pounds to dollars. You will be spending 1/3 more than you would have 6 months ago. $200 spending money for a trip to the USA will now cost you £133 whereas 6 months ago it would have only been £100 and of course buying goods in dollars will also be more costly, this will affect businesses who buy stock from the United States.