Travelers Scramble to Trade Dollars for Devalued Peso : Currency: O.C. businesses are swamped for requests for Mexican money, which has lost about a third of its value. Initially, some U.S. exports will suffer, some experts say.

The full effect of Mexico’s decision last week to let the value of the peso float against the dollar is yet to be seen, but one result was immediate.

Currency traders in Orange County said Thursday that they have been swamped with requests for the Mexican currency.

Travelers bound for Mexico are buying up every peso on hand at Thomas Cook Currency Services’ three local offices, manager Tom Drake said.

“We don’t usually sell out,” he said, “but this year it was people taking advantage of the devaluation before they go.”

Though some companies that have extensive business dealings in Mexico fear that the falling peso might reduce demand for U.S. exports in the short term, even they are generally optimistic.

“In the long run, it will be good news for all of us,” said Robert Wallace, managing director of Export Specialists Inc. The company, based in Irvine, arranges trades for U.S. manufacturers in Mexico and Asia.

“The short-term effect is that it will stunt exports,” Wallace said. “But it really was a correction to where the peso should have been.

“In the long run, it will increase demand in Mexico and increase the opportunity to make investments there.”

Despite the local boom in dollars-for-pesos trading, travel agents said they had not yet seen a boost in their own business.

“This part of the year is the absolute bottom for new sales,” said Donald Carlson, president of Courtyard Travel Inc. in Tustin. “Mexico is our most popular destination, but our sales are still way down right now.”

Carlson said he expects brisker sales in the first weeks of January, however, as the news sinks in.

The Mexican currency has lost about a third of its value since Dec. 19, the day before the government said it would no longer buy pesos priced below the official exchange rate.

The devalued peso is likely to help Mexican manufacturers and foreign consumers as the country’s goods become cheaper abroad. In contrast, Mexican consumers and foreign investors will be hurt as domestic purchasing power declines.

Investors probably will get over their shock relatively quickly, however, said Edmund Bretz, a vice president for international banking at Bank of America’s Anaheim office.

Most of the goods shipped from Orange County to Mexico are precision manufacturing and medical products, which will still be in demand despite the higher prices, he said.

“These are critical items for their economy, so it’s not just consumer items people can do without,” he said.

Martin Magdaleno, a consultant based in Yorba Linda, said at least one deal he had arranged for a Corona-based toy manufacturer has been postponed. The buyer, a Mexican distributor, asked for more time before offering a price.

The buyer “just wanted to see how the market is going to adjust,” Magdaleno said. “I didn’t think he was wrong” to do so.

Magdaleno noted that the value of U.S. currency sent home by Mexican workers in the United States has suddenly risen, which will stimulate demand for consumer products.

“It’s one of those ‘I’ll get rich for a while, then you get rich for a while’ kind of deals,” he said.