Peso Falls Against Dollar

The Mexican Peso fell Friday to the lowest it has been since it was revalued in 1993: 16.29 to the dollar. With many downtown El Paso stores dependent on international shoppers from Cd. Juarez, local commerce is taking a hit.

The peso’s fall started late last November, when it traded at $13.60. It has been consistently falling against the dollar since. A more expensive dollar has made some international shoppers wary about spending their money in the U.S.

“We came to El Paso with different expectations. Now that our money’s worth less, we won’t be able to buy as much as we had planned,” said Alejandro Rodriguez, a shopper from Chihuahua City.

Some international shoppers may have been deterred by the rising dollar price.

“The shopping streets are not as full as they used to be. Some people from Juarez have stopped coming because it’s so expensive,” said Cd. Juarez shopper, Uvaldo Sieental.

Some shop owners have been hit so hard by the drop in customers they have been forced to lower their prices. Others are trying to keep their customers by fighting the exchange rate, accepting pesos at a better price than the market.

“If they don’t have the US Dollar, and they do carry pesos in their wallet, it’s an advantage to us because we’re still getting money in,” said Krystal Hernandez, an employee at a downtown clothing store.

One shopkeeper we spoke with says they have lost more than 40 percent of their customers since the peso started its fall in late November last year.

She said some stores have been forced to close.

One of the reasons the peso may have devalued is falling commodity prices like oil, which is a key factor in the Mexican economy.