While I was doing my usual web browsing on my favorite news media organizations, the other week, I stumbled upon a very compelling story. I’m not into economics and business. I hate to watch Bloomberg and those channels that talk about Wall Street, NASDAQ and others. But this story really stirred my interest because having read the story; I found out that the Philippine peso getting on much better compared to some currencies, in the parts of the world.
It can’t be denied that most, if not all of the news stories that every media, whether in print or in broadcast carry in their stories is the recent global economic recession, exacerbated by the recent turmoil in the financial markets worldwide.
Believe it or not, while the Philippine peso is sliding against the American dollar other high-value currency on the market these days, but we can take some solace to the fact that there are some currencies out there that make $1 or 49.455 pesos (the latest peso rate against the dollar) seem like a fortune.
This news organization conducted a study recently and it unveiled at the 10 worst currencies in the world to see how much a dollar could buy, and you might think that the Philippine peso is one of them, you are definitely wrong.
Number 10:Paraguay
Value: $1 USD = 4,615.00 Guarani
Paraguay is the second poorest country in South America, with an unemployment rate pushing 16 percent and more than 35 percent of its population living in poverty. The Paraguay guarani runs about 4,615 to $1.
Paraguay’s capital city, Asuncion, was ranked the cheapest city in the world out of 143 locales this year, its sixth time getting that honor according to Mercer, a human resources consulting company that does an annual cost of living survey.
The currency’s symbol — Pyg — is sometimes confused with a Japanese 1970s rock band of the same name.
Number 9: Guinea
Value: $1 USD = 5,115.00 Franc
The African nation of Guinea — near Guinea-Bissau and nowhere near Papua New Guinea — has the ninth-worst currency in the world, with 5,115 of its francs getting you a single U.S. dollar. A country in West Africa, formerly known as French Guinea. The country’s current population is estimated at 10,211,437
Its natural resources include the aluminum ore bauxite, diamonds and gold, and the country’s soccer team has never made it to the World Cup.
Number 8: Laos
Value: $1 USD = 8,640.75 Kip
Vietnam’s up-river neighbor, Laos, has been experiencing resurgence in tourism, but it still deals in one of the worst currencies in the world. A single U.S. dollar will buy you 8,640.75 kip. officially the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Laos traces its history to the Kingdom of Lan Xang or Land of a Million Elephants, which existed from the fourteenth to the eighteenth century.
Laos home to the Indochinese tiger, the giant guar, the Asian elephant and a thriving Opium trade.
Number 7: Iran
Value: $1 USD = 10,179 Rial
Officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, formerly known internationally as Persia until 1935, is a country in Central Eurasia, located on the northeastern shore of the Persian Gulf.Under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran has remained a thorn in the side of the Western world, refusing to stop its nuclear program and continuing to threaten Israel.
While Iran has been riding high on petro-dollars as oil prices skyrocketed — driving up the price of everything from a gallon of gas to an airplane ticket to a box of cereal in the U.S. — its currency has remained unimpressive.
One U.S. dollar will buy you 10,179.00 rial, but don’t start packing your bags. The government warns against travel to Iran as some elements of the regime remain hostile to the U.S.
Number 6: Indonesia
Value: $1 USD = 11,198.40 Rupiah
Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia. Comprising 17,508 islands, it is the world’s largest archipelagic state. With a population of 222 million people in 2006, it is the world’s fourth most populous country The largest Muslim nation in the world also has one of the least-valuable currencies in the world. It takes 11,198.40 Indonesian rupiah to buy a single U.S. dollar.
Its capital city — Jakarta — is the largest city in Southeast Asia with a population of 8.5 million, about the same as New York City. Indonesia is also home to Bali, a tropical tourist paradise that was targeted by terrorists who bombed a nightclub in 2002.
Number 5: Sao Tome and Principe
Value: $1 USD = 14,350 Dobra
the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Africa. It consists of two islands: São Tomé and Príncipe, located about 140 kilometres apart and about 250 and 225 kilometres, respectively, Sao Tome and Principe is a small island nation off the western coast of Africa and has the fifth-weakest currency in the world. A single U.S. dollar will cost you 14,350 dobra.
The former Portuguese colony is the second-smallest nation in Africa, bigger than only Seychelles, and it exports cocoa, palm kernels and coffee.
Number 4: Vietnam
Value: $1 UDS = 16,975.00 Dong
The Vietnamese currency is called the dong. Yes, you read it correctly. the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east. With a population of over 86 million, Vietnam is the 13th most populous country in the world.
Americans have a complicated history when it comes to Vietnam, but the still-communist country has a blossoming tourism industry, and visitors are usually asked to pay for everything with dollars, which trade at a dong rate of 16,975 to $1.
Number 3: Turkmenistan
Value: $1 USD = 24,000 Manat
A country located in Central Asia the name Turkmenistan is derived from Persian, meaning “land of the Turkmen”. The name of its capital, Ashgabat, is derived from Persian as well, loosely translating as “the city of loveliness”. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic.There aren’t enough manat in the world to buy you a ticket to the opera, which was officially abolished by Turkmenistan’s late leader, Turkmenbashi — along with the ballet, AIDS and other scourges.
The former Soviet republic got its own currency on Nov. 1, 1993, when the manat replaced the Russian ruble. Turkmenbashi, also known as former “President for Life” Saparamurat Niyazov, put himself on the country’s money — all of it.
Number 2: Somalia
Value: $1 USD = 35,000 Shillings
Formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya on its southwest, the Gulf of Aden with Yemen on its north, the Indian Ocean at its east, and Ethiopia to the west.Not even a recent rash of high-stakes, high-seas hijacks have been able to revive Somalia’s stunted and shrinking economy.
The shilling has been Somalia’s official currency since 1962 and has been declining in value steadily since the government breakdown in 1991, when it was valued at about 2,000 Somali shillings to $1 USD.
Number 1: Zimbabwe
Value: $1 USD = 642,371,437,695,221,000 Zimbabwean Dollars
Yup, you got it right. That’s 642,371,437,695,221,000. You have to be very good in your decimal places lessons in Math to accurately read the numbers out. It’s hard to keep track of just how fast the Zimbabwean dollar has fallen since the government reinstated electronic parallel market transfers on Nov. 13, but even before that the currency of Zimbabwe was the most worthless in the world.
Zimbabwean dollars to the $1 USD, the old mutual implied rate, generated from comparing the Zimbabwe and London stock exchanges, valued the currency at more than 642 quadrillion to one.
When the currency was revalued in the middle of this year, an egg cost about $35 billion Zimbabwean dollars.
So, how much is your peso’s value today? If you thought your peso’s worth is measly, think again.