Kiribati - Australian Dollar - Currency Guide

General Currency Info - Australian Dollar

The Australian dollar is the fifth most traded currency in the world and is popular with currency traders, because of the high interest rates in Australia, the freedom of the foreign exchange market from government intervention, the stability of Australia's economy and political system, and the view that the Australian dollar offers diversification benefits in a portfolio containing the major world currencies, especially because of its greater exposure to Asian economies and the commodities cycle.

The currency is commonly referred to by foreign-exchange traders as the "Aussie dollar".

AUD News, Forecasts and Trends

The bleak outlook in the US has added downward pressure on the world’s base currency and helped consolidate the Aussie dollars’ upturn. Although the Australian dollar has recently edged through the key 0.72 handle, a sustained move above this level has been hard to come by.

Further uncertainty in the US could push the AUD through 0.72 US cents.

In the second quarter of 2020 AUD staged a rapid recovery through the months of April, May and into June up 25% from its mid-March lows to US70c in early June. This is due more to the perceived benefits to Australia of an awakening post-pandemic Chinese economy than the political-social situtation in the US dpressing the USD.

The Aussie had been savaged in March sliding to US55 cents the lowest since 2003. Growing fears of the coronavirus outbreak moved the market into safer currencies such as the USD and away from AUD, NZD and CAD.

The virus was a double blow to the Aussie after the earlier threat of proxy war between the US and Iran in Iraq had also pared back some of the gains the Aussie had made coming into the New Year.

The Australian dollar had started the new decade strongly climbing to multi-month highs helped along by cooling trade tensions between the United States and China and optimism for global economic growth in the year ahead.

The Aussie broke back over US70 cents on the final day of 2019 — a level not seen since mid year. During December the Australian dollar reversed direction (again) and climbed steadily back up against the US dollar on the back of the strength of the housing market and a market perception that further interest rate cuts were less likely.

For more AUD currency market forecasts you can read the full article Australian Dollar Forecasts. The above interactive chart shows the USD to AUD exchange rate, trend and recent alerts for the last 90 days.

Travel, Currency and Money saving tips for Kiribati

English is Kiribati’s official language, but most natives also speak the local Gilbertese tongue. You shouldn't have a problem communicating wherever you go, although the farther you get from Tarawa and Christmas Island, the less English is used. Kiribati and the Islands use the Australian dollar; a major currency that can be exchanged anywhere. You can also change money at the Bank of Kiribati or ANZ bank on Tarawa or Christmas Island. Kiribati is a mostly cash-oriented country, though major cards are accepted in hotels and some shops. Traveler’s checks should be in Aussie dollars.

Transportation: the only transportation are minivans. They don't have timetables. They are run by private people who decide randomly the start and the end of the trip. Often they are full and for this reason they won't stop to pick you up. Sometimes the engine breaks and you have to find another one. But in spite of all these problems they are ok. There are no taxis in the Gilbert Islands. The local transportation is carried out by Air Kiribati. There are regular flights to every island in the Gilbert group except for Banaba, price around 50 AUD one way three times a week for the near islands (until Kuria and Aranuka), and price around 100 - 150 AUD one way once a week for the further ones (for instance, Nonouti, Nikunau, Beru).

Travel money for Kiribati

Save money and time by Ordering your Australian Dollars online from Travelex, you get better rates and can pick up the AUD cash locally or even on travel day at the airport.

Another popular option is to use a Pre-paid Travel Card. Your Debit/Credit Card provider will charge you 2% from market mid-rate, but your bank may also charge an extra 3% as an “Overseas Transaction Charge” plus “Overseas ATM” fees for withdrawing cash.

For card purchases if offered a choice of currencies always select to Pay in Australian Dollars otherwise you may get much worst exchange rates.

Sending money to Kiribati

When searching around for information on how to get a good exchange rate when sending money to Kiribati you need to start with finding out the latest Australian Dollar exchange rate for foreign-transfers, which can be very different to the wholesale rate.

Then compare your bank's exchange rates to several licensed FX providers exchange rate and fees to see how much you can save - we make that calculation easy in the below table.

Get a better deal for foreign transfers to Kiribati

When sending money to Kiribati it’s important to compare your bank’s rates & fees with those we have negotiated with our partner money transfer providers. To get a better deal you should follow these 4 simple steps :

1. Open an account with a BER reviewed FX provider (id docs may be required)
2. You specify the local or Australian Dollar amount you want to transfer
3. Make a local currency domestic transfer for the requested amount to the provider's bank account in your country
4. Once your funds are received by the provider the converted AUD amount will be transfered to the recipient account you specify in Kiribati.

Use the above Send to Australian Dollars calculator to compare the exchange rates of FX specialist providers rates versus your bank's standard rates you can hopefully save around 5% and maybe more - end result is more Australian Dollars deposited into the recipient bank account and less margins and fees kept by the banks!