Leading Question

When it comes to feeding our powerful tourism and real estate industries, the anemic U.S. buck is a boon. "It's been very positive on the international-tourism side of things," says D.T. Minich, executive director of the Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau. "We're perceived as being a good value."

Recent currency data show that the dollar is worth about .83 euros (?), compared with a little more than ?1 in early 2003. English pound-wise, the dollar fetches .56 in British currency compared with £.60 three years ago.

"If the price of the dollar goes down, [foreign visitors] can buy U.S. goods more cheaply," says Bradley K. Hobbs, associate professor of finance and economics at Florida Gulf Coast University.

With greater purchasing power, Europeans are flocking to Southwest Florida for vacations, Minich says. In November 2005, Lee County hosted 12,891 European visitors, up from 12,385 in the same month in 2003. And between 2004 and 2003, the annual number of Europeans coming to Lee increased to 178,213 from 169,188. The bump up in international tourist counts means that hotels, restaurants, retailers and other tourist-friendly businesses can come out winners.

"It's not only good for tourism, but for places like Miromar Outlets," Minich says. "[International visitors] are hauling back suitcases from their shopping trips."

Those visitors also invest money in commercial and residential real estate, boosting those sectors, Hobbs says. And for Southwest Florida exporters, the weak dollar means our goods can be purchased more cheaply, so sales go up overseas where their currency is stronger, Hobbs says.

There is a downside, however, to the weak buck. "Companies and consumers who import have to spend more," Hobbs says. "For example, the dollar is weak against the yen, so importers buying Japanese TVs will pay more."

-Phil Borchmann