The “hidden depreciation of the yen” is making overseas travel more and more difficult during the year-end and New Year’s holidays….

At the end of last year, the U.S. dollar exchange rate was about “133 yen to the dollar…

Many people are planning to travel abroad during the year-end and New Year holidays. At that time, you may be concerned about the exchange rate. At the end of last year, the U.S. dollar exchange rate was about 133 yen to the dollar, but over the past year the yen has weakened to about 148 yen to the dollar.

For those planning a trip to Hawaii, the depreciation of the yen alone should make prices seem more than 10% higher than last year. Furthermore, even though inflation in the U.S. has slowed down, prices are still higher than last year, so in total, you should feel about 15% more expensive there than last year.

What is “hidden yen depreciation”…

Now, here comes the main issue. Actually, “hidden yen depreciation” is a hot topic right now. It is said that this year’s weak yen is different from last year’s weak yen. The difference is that last year’s weak yen was a phenomenon in which currencies around the world depreciated against the U.S. dollar. However, this year’s weak yen is a phenomenon in which not only the U.S. dollar but also currencies around the world are strengthening against the Japanese yen.

To put it more simply, the yen is weakening everywhere in the world .Countries and regions where the yen has weakened over the past year include the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore.

For example, at the end of a year ago, the Chinese yuan was around 18.90 yen per yuan, but over the past year the yen has continued to depreciate against the yuan and is now 20.70 yen. The Korean won has depreciated from 10.3 sen to 11.4 sen, and the Taiwan dollar has depreciated from 4.30 yen to 4.70 yen over the past year.

If you have already decided where to travel for the year-end and New Year’s holidays, it is best to enjoy your trip there even with the weak yen. However, if you have already decided on a destination, you may want to think about where you want to go. Here is some practical advice.

In “Hong Kong,” a bottle of Coke costs 360 yen…

First of all, you may be fed up with the high cost of living wherever you go in developed countries. Many countries have higher inflation rates than Japan. For example, the inflation rate in the United Kingdom and Australia is about 5%, which is more expensive than in the United States.

The same applies to tourist destinations where prices used to be low. I visited Hong Kong on a business trip last month and found that a bottle of Coke at a convenience store costs 360 yen and a bowl of ramen noodles costs 1,400 yen, so that prices in Hong Kong are double what they used to be in the Japanese sense.