Tech & Biz

Dollah dollah coin, y'all: Loonie hits record high

by Kaitlin | September 13, 2007 at 09:12 am

767 views | 10 Recommendations | 1 comment

Perhaps a trip south is in order for us Canuckleheads: the Canadian dollar has hit its highest point in thirty years. Something interesting (though I suppose obvious) I learned from this article is that the CAN$ is considered to be a "petro-currency" because of the amount of crude oil we produce and export. Since crude is priced in US$, our dollar goes up in accordance with oil prices. Neato!

In earlier trading, it went as high as 96.94 cents US, eclipsing the previous 30-year high of 96.70 cents US set July 24. The dollar hadn't been that high since Feb. 21, 1977, according to Bank of Canada data.

Some analysts see the loonie reaching parity with the U.S. dollar by the end of this year. The last time the two currencies traded at par was in 1976. Currently, a U.S. dollar can be bought for a little less than $1.04 Canadian.

So what was happening in 1976 and 1977 in Canada? Well, in 1976 Trudeau was Prime Minister, Dome Petroleum was allowed to drill in the Beaufort Sea, Montreal hosted the Olympics, the CN Tower opened in Toronto, and the Timbit was introduced. In '77, Keith Richards gets busted in his Toronto suite, Pierre divorces his wife, deliberations in the House of Commons are televised, the Charter of the French Language is passed, and the Blue Jays play their first game [Wikipedia]. Hmm.

Interesting years for Canada, but the most interesting part was this--in the 70s, North America was facing an energy crisis similar to the one we're experiencing today. It's no coincidence that drilling in the Beaufort Sea started in '76--alternative oil sources to the Middle East were being sought (sound familiar?).

Then again, maybe it all has to do with Trudeau--after all, it was in 1977 that he did a pirouette behind the Queen on TV. That should count for something, should it not? Even a few cents?