Sad news, but I don't blame eurolokshop one bit. That exchange rate is crazy vs the dollar.

I can imagine how tough it is to be a dealer as well. i've often called multiple shops wanting to buy something and ever single one would sound plain depressed when they said they doubt they could even get it. I defintely learned to take the imported brass approach with HAG- preorder and be prepared to wait a long time for delivery...

When I was in Zurich last year, the exchange rate was about 1-1 with the USD. I puchased a Rivarossi BLS Re4/4I from Zuri-tech (a very nice lok BTW) at a competative price. With the exchange rate today at about 1.3x, I can't even imagine buying anything in Switzerland right now.

From news digest:

PARIS— Switzerland’s central bank signaled Thursday it was prepared to consider a once-unthinkable step: pegging the nation’s "massively overvalued" currency to the euro, at least temporarily.

Such a move would be a response to the global financial turmoil that has lifted the value of the Swiss franc, which investors consider a safe haven, to levels that are menacing Switzerland’s economy.


Michael

The situation in Switzerland is good and bad. Swiss citizens find that their money is going much farther outside of the country, be it in the United States or elsewhere in Europe. Buying Swiss products has become much more expensive for people outside the country, which can hurt business, especially small businesses like Hag.
In rising from 90 Cents to $1.40, the Swiss Franc has seen an amazing surge. Part of this is not due to the Franc increasing, but to the drop in the Euro against the more stable Swiss currency. This has resulted in people speculating on the Swiss Franc, which has driven it even higher. The actual value of the Swiss Franc today should be closer to 0.80 EUR.
Canada faced a similar situation vis-a-vis the US Dollar. The dollar had gone from 65 Cents to $1.05. The Canadian Dollar probably should be worth about $1.20-1.25 today, but the Canadian Government has stepped in discretely on a few occasions to keep the CAD$ close to the US$, as the USA is our main trade partner, and having a higher value would hurt Canadian Exports. This decision has hurt Canadian Importers, as US goods are cheaper, but goods imported from Europe and especially Switzerland have become way too expensive.
The drop in the Euro has meant that goods from the EU are still comparable to prices before the crash. The sad part about it is that the monetary policies of the Canadian Government have deprived Canadians of being able to benefit from what would be the best exchange rates in years.

Regards

Mike C