Foreign currency exchange rate on eBay purchases

[17h11m]

Why do the weasels at eBay convert foreign currency purchase transaction at a rate less favorable than the hammer price?

Example: all inclusive item hammer price clearly shown in listing - $37.01

the subsequent charge  on my PayPal account - $38.31

Other than the fact that they cheating weasels why does eBay arbitrarily inflate  the final cost above what is shown in final orders details?

[kathiec]

The "hammer price" as you call it is the price in whatever is the currency of the listing. The conversion into USD is never more than an approximation. Your final cost will depend on the conversion tables used by the entity processing the payment, based on the rates at the moment the payment is processed. Those rates fluctuate several times a day. It also can include currency conversion fees charged by the payment processor. In your case that payment processor was Paypal. 

[house*of*paws]

Hi @17h11m 

The price conversions shown in listings are always an approximation.  Currency conversion takes place at the time the order is placed ... and includes a conversion fee.

Maybe you should reconsider buying from a source that you consider a cheating weasel.  Your sellers would probably appreciate that.  

[maxine*j]

If one willingly does business with those he considers "cheating weasels," what does that make him?

-

[woodland_gnome]

The "approximate" conversions displayed for non-USD items on ebay.com are ALWAYS too low: they are calculated using readily accessible "mid-market rate" quotes (an average of wholesale buy and sell rates of several large banks which are reported on financial websites and in newspapers who still do that) while someone with funds in the approximately-converted-to currency (USD on ebay.com, GBP on ebay.co.uk) will have to pay someone their retail "buy rate" to pay the seller the correct price in the currency of listing; figure about 3% to 3.5% higher if you let eBay checkout do the converting.   If you have funds in the actual currency involved (e.g. a PayPal account with separate USD and GBP or EUR balances or a credit card in the currency) and pay with those you will be paying the actual price (plus s/h, taxes).