Weak UK pound an early Christmas present for Irish shoppers

Associated Press ^ | Dec 21, 2016 7:30 AM EST | Shawn Pogatchnik

[Olog-hai]

The threat of “Brexit” is delivering a Christmas bonanza to Northern Ireland, where the thousands visiting daily from the euro-using Republic of Ireland are finding bargains driven by the battered pound.

In the malls of Newry, a Northern Ireland town barely 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the United Kingdom’s only land border with a European Union partner, the surge in cross-border holiday shopping underscores how far the British currency has fallen amid anxiety over the country’s promised EU exit.

While the euro is unusually weak against the resurgent dollar, the pound is far weaker, boosting price differentials on most goods. That’s been the case since June, when a majority of British voters — including 44 percent of those in Northern Ireland — shocked pollsters by voting to leave the world’s largest economic union. The pound since has endured a precipitous fall and today is worth less than €1.20, about 15 percent less than a year ago. …

[Sans-Culotte]

I keep thinking I should order some Blu-rays or DVDs from the UK with the pound worth about $1.25 now. Just can’t think of anything to order.

[concentric circles]

Don't forget to order a player as well. DVD's from the UK
and the rest of Europe don't play on American machines.

[Sans-Culotte]

Don't forget to order a player as well. DVD's from the UK and the rest of Europe don't play on American machines.

Oh, I've been region-free for years. Currently I play my foreign DVDs and Blu-rays with an Oppo BDP95 that has a hardware mod to make it region free. And my Sharp Aquos TV plays all formats - HD, NTSC, PAL, etc.