Understanding Historical Foreign Exchange Rates
The value of currencies fluctuates constantly in the global foreign exchange market (Forex). These fluctuations are influenced by a myriad of factors, including economic indicators, geopolitical events, interest rate changes, and market sentiment. A historical foreign exchange rate calculator allows you to see how much one currency would have been worth in another currency on a specific past date.
This is incredibly useful for various purposes:
- Historical Analysis: Businesses can analyze past transactions, understand the cost of imported goods at different times, or assess the profitability of international sales over periods.
- Personal Finance: Individuals might want to know how much a past foreign investment was worth in their home currency, or how much a trip abroad cost in today's terms.
- Research and Education: Students and researchers can use historical rates for economic studies, understanding currency trends, and testing financial models.
When using this calculator, you input the amount you wish to convert, select the original currency (the one you have) and the target currency (the one you want to convert to), and specify the exact historical date you are interested in. The calculator then retrieves the historical exchange rate for that specific date and performs the conversion, giving you an estimate of the equivalent value.
Important Note: Exchange rates can vary slightly between different financial institutions and data providers. The rates provided by this calculator are based on available historical data and should be considered for informational purposes. For precise financial transactions, always consult with your bank or a reputable foreign exchange service.
Example Calculation:
Let's say you want to know how much 1000 Euros (EUR) was worth in US Dollars (USD) on January 15, 2022.
- Amount to Convert: 1000
- Base Currency: EUR
- Target Currency: USD
- Historical Date: 2022-01-15
If the historical exchange rate on that day was 1 EUR = 1.14 USD, then:
1000 EUR * 1.14 USD/EUR = 1140 USD
So, 1000 Euros would have been equivalent to 1140 US Dollars on January 15, 2022.
var exchangeRates = {
"2023-01-01": {
"USD": {"EUR": 0.93, "GBP": 0.81, "JPY": 131.45, "CAD": 1.35, "AUD": 1.46, "CHF": 0.93, "CNY": 6.90, "SEK": 10.44, "NZD": 1.59},
"EUR": {"USD": 1.07, "GBP": 0.87, "JPY": 141.51, "CAD": 1.45, "AUD": 1.57, "CHF": 0.99, "CNY": 7.43, "SEK": 11.25, "NZD": 1.71},
"GBP": {"USD": 1.23, "EUR": 1.15, "JPY": 162.58, "CAD": 1.67, "AUD": 1.81, "CHF": 1.14, "CNY": 8.53, "SEK": 12.92, "NZD": 1.97},
"JPY": {"USD": 0.0076, "EUR": 0.0071, "GBP": 0.0061, "CAD": 0.010, "AUD": 0.011, "CHF": 0.0070, "CNY": 0.052, "SEK": 0.079, "NZD": 0.12},
"CAD": {"USD": 0.74, "EUR": 0.69, "GBP": 0.60, "JPY": 97.50, "AUD": 1.08, "CHF": 0.68, "CNY": 5.11, "SEK": 7.75, "NZD": 1.18},
"AUD": {"USD": 0.68, "EUR": 0.64, "GBP": 0.55, "JPY": 89.97, "CAD": 0.92, "CHF": 0.62, "CNY": 4.70, "SEK": 7.13, "NZD": 1.08},
"CHF": {"USD": 1.07, "EUR": 1.00, "GBP": 0.87, "JPY": 141.51, "CAD": 1.45, "AUD": 1.57, "CNY": 7.43, "SEK": 11.25, "NZD": 1.71},
"CNY": {"USD": 0.14, "EUR": 0.13, "GBP": 0.12, "JPY": 19.06, "CAD": 0.20, "AUD": 0.21, "CHF": 0.13, "SEK": 1.52, "NZD": 0.23},
"SEK": {"USD": 0.096, "EUR": 0.089, "GBP": 0.077, "JPY": 12.50, "CAD": 0.13, "AUD": 0.14, "CHF": 0.089, "CNY": 0.66, "NZD": 0.15},
"NZD": {"USD": 0.63, "EUR": 0.58, "GBP": 0.51, "JPY": 102.64, "CAD": 1.10, "AUD": 1.19, "CHF": 0.60, "CNY": 4.45, "SEK": 6.57}
},
"2022-01-15": {
"USD": {"EUR": 0.88, "GBP": 0.73, "JPY": 115.00, "CAD": 1.26, "AUD": 1.38, "CHF": 0.92, "CNY": 6.37, "SEK": 9.72, "NZD": 1.48},
"EUR": {"USD": 1.14, "GBP": 0.83, "JPY": 130.70, "CAD": 1.43, "AUD": 1.57, "CHF": 1.05, "CNY": 7.24, "SEK": 11.05, "NZD": 1.68},
"GBP": {"USD": 1.36, "EUR": 1.20, "JPY": 157.00, "CAD": 1.72, "AUD": 1.89, "CHF": 1.26, "CNY": 8.70, "SEK": 13.27, "NZD": 2.02},
"JPY": {"USD": 0.0087, "EUR": 0.0076, "GBP": 0.0064, "CAD": 0.011, "AUD": 0.012, "CHF": 0.0079, "CNY": 0.055, "SEK": 0.084, "NZD": 0.13},
"CAD": {"USD": 0.79, "EUR": 0.70, "GBP": 0.58, "JPY": 90.50, "AUD": 1.10, "CHF": 0.73, "CNY": 5.06, "SEK": 7.72, "NZD": 1.18},
"AUD": {"USD": 0.73, "EUR": 0.64, "GBP": 0.53, "JPY": 82.30, "CAD": 0.91, "CHF": 0.66, "CNY": 4.60, "SEK": 7.02, "NZD": 1.07},
"CHF": {"USD": 1.08, "EUR": 0.95, "GBP": 0.79, "JPY": 127.00, "CAD": 1.37, "AUD": 1.51, "CNY": 6.90, "SEK": 10.57, "NZD": 1.61},
"CNY": {"USD": 0.16, "EUR": 0.14, "GBP": 0.11, "JPY": 18.84, "CAD": 0.20, "AUD": 0.22, "CHF": 0.15, "SEK": 1.54, "NZD": 0.23},
"SEK": {"USD": 0.10, "EUR": 0.090, "GBP": 0.075, "JPY": 12.35, "CAD": 0.13, "AUD": 0.14, "CHF": 0.095, "CNY": 0.65, "NZD": 0.15},
"NZD": {"USD": 0.68, "EUR": 0.59, "GBP": 0.49, "JPY": 108.90, "CAD": 1.19, "AUD": 1.30, "CHF": 0.77, "CNY": 4.88, "SEK": 7.37}
},
"2021-01-15": {
"USD": {"EUR": 0.82, "GBP": 0.73, "JPY": 103.50, "CAD": 1.26, "AUD": 1.30, "CHF": 0.89, "CNY": 6.46, "SEK": 8.48, "NZD": 1.41},
"EUR": {"USD": 1.22, "GBP": 0.90, "JPY": 126.00, "CAD": 1.53, "AUD": 1.58, "CHF": 1.08, "CNY": 7.86, "SEK": 10.32, "NZD": 1.71},
"GBP": {"USD": 1.35, "EUR": 1.11, "JPY": 140.00, "CAD": 1.70, "AUD": 1.76, "CHF": 1.20, "CNY": 8.73, "SEK": 11.46, "NZD": 1.90},
"JPY": {"USD": 0.0097, "EUR": 0.0079, "GBP": 0.0071, "CAD": 0.012, "AUD": 0.013, "CHF": 0.0086, "CNY": 0.062, "SEK": 0.081, "NZD": 0.13},
"CAD": {"USD": 0.79, "EUR": 0.65, "GBP": 0.59, "JPY": 82.00, "AUD": 1.03, "CHF": 0.70, "CNY": 5.13, "SEK": 6.73, "NZD": 1.11},
"AUD": {"USD": 0.77, "EUR": 0.63, "GBP": 0.57, "JPY": 79.60, "CAD": 0.97, "CHF": 0.68, "CNY": 4.98, "SEK": 6.53, "NZD": 1.08},
"CHF": {"USD": 1.12, "EUR": 0.93, "GBP": 0.83, "JPY": 116.20, "CAD": 1.41, "AUD": 1.45, "CNY": 7.27, "SEK": 9.52, "NZD": 1.58},
"CNY": {"USD": 0.15, "EUR": 0.13, "GBP": 0.11, "JPY": 15.50, "CAD": 0.19, "AUD": 0.20, "CHF": 0.14, "SEK": 1.31, "NZD": 0.22},
"SEK": {"USD": 0.12, "EUR": 0.097, "GBP": 0.087, "JPY": 11.80, "CAD": 0.15, "AUD": 0.15, "CHF": 0.11, "CNY": 0.76, "NZD": 0.17},
"NZD": {"USD": 0.71, "EUR": 0.58, "GBP": 0.53, "JPY": 96.20, "CAD": 1.15, "AUD": 1.19, "CHF": 0.72, "CNY": 5.26, "SEK": 7.07}
}
};
function calculateExchangeRate() {
var originalAmount = parseFloat(document.getElementById("originalAmount").value);
var baseCurrency = document.getElementById("baseCurrency").value;
var targetCurrency = document.getElementById("targetCurrency").value;
var historicalDate = document.getElementById("historicalDate").value;
var resultDiv = document.getElementById("result");
if (isNaN(originalAmount) || originalAmount <= 0) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please enter a valid positive amount.";
return;
}
if (!historicalDate) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please select a historical date.";
return;
}
var ratesForDate = exchangeRates[historicalDate];
if (!ratesForDate) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Historical rate data not available for this date. Please try another date.";
return;
}
var rate = 0;
if (baseCurrency === targetCurrency) {
rate = 1;
} else {
var ratesFromBase = ratesForDate[baseCurrency];
if (ratesFromBase && ratesFromBase[targetCurrency] !== undefined) {
rate = ratesFromBase[targetCurrency];
} else {
// Handle inverse rate if not directly available (e.g., EUR to USD might be available, but not USD to EUR directly)
var ratesToBase = ratesForDate[targetCurrency];
if (ratesToBase && ratesToBase[baseCurrency] !== undefined) {
rate = 1 / ratesToBase[baseCurrency];
} else {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Exchange rate not found for the selected currencies and date.";
return;
}
}
}
var convertedAmount = originalAmount * rate;
var baseCurrencyText = document.querySelector("#baseCurrency option[value='" + baseCurrency + "']").text;
var targetCurrencyText = document.querySelector("#targetCurrency option[value='" + targetCurrency + "']").text;
resultDiv.innerHTML =
"On
" + historicalDate + ", " +
originalAmount.toFixed(2) + " of " + baseCurrency + " (" + baseCurrencyText.split('(')[0].trim() + ")" +
" was approximately worth " +
convertedAmount.toFixed(2) + " of " + targetCurrency + " (" + targetCurrencyText.split('(')[0].trim() + ")." +
"
(1 " + baseCurrency + " = " + rate.toFixed(4) + " " + targetCurrency + ")";
}