Word: franc
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...roll of publicity drums that builds up to a toot on an uncertain trumpet. Early in the week the dollar came under a concentrated cannonade from some financial Guns of August, and its steady, summer-long retreat turned into a disorderly rout. It fell 4½% against the Swiss franc in a single day, while the price of gold, the ultimate refuge for investors worried lest their dollars become worth much less, hit an unheard-of $215.90 an ounce. So the White House passed the word that President Carter was "deeply concerned" and had asked Treasury Secretary W. Michael Blumenthal...
...anyone waiting for rationality in the foreign-exchange and gold markets may have to wait a very long time. Last week's trading was an example: though there was no special news to drive the dollar down, it sank to record lows against the yen, mark and Swiss franc, and also declined against the British pound, which bobbed briefly over $2 for the first time since 1976. Despite the later rally, at week's end the dollar had registered these drops just since mid-July: 7% against the yen, 3.5% against the mark, 10.5% against the Swiss franc...
...anxiety. Clients crowd his Hong Kong branch offices to buy newly minted "Deak Dollars," small gold coins that command premium prices because they are stamped with Deak's aquiline features. Other customers stand in line at his 42nd Street outlet in Manhattan to buy gold coins and Swiss franc traveler's checks, which they stash away as investments. At this rate, Nick Deak will be giving Karl Maiden some competition. Still other investors-widows, orphans and the simply frightened-seek Deak for investment advice or put their money into gold, silver or Swiss franc deposits in his banks...
...dollar's gyrations last winter and spring cost the U.S. Treasury some $3 billion in support operations, the greenback was already so grossly undervalued against the West German mark that the exchange rate remained relatively stable at about 2.04 to the dollar. But the value of the Swiss franc rose to an alltime high of 1.75, and the price of gold surged to a record $201 an ounce on frantic trading in both London and Zurich...
...week-long oscillations added yet more irritation to the once enjoyable experience of spending U.S. dollars overseas. At present exchange rates, a U.S. Army lieut. colonel stationed in Japan earns less than senior Japanese guards ($25,900) employed at the base near Tokyo. In Paris, where the French franc hit a three-year high against the dollar and a Coca-Cola costs $1.25, California Tourist William Warrell glumly observed: "I don't see how people can travel anymore. I really...