Loonie Catches Up to Dollar

First time Loonie equaled greenback since Nov. 1976
By Colleen Barry,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 21, 2007 3:33 AM CDT
Loonie Catches Up to Dollar
A Canadian dollar, or loonie, right, and the U.S. dollar, background, are seen on Thursday, Sept. 20, 2007 in Montreal, Que. The Canadian dollar moved decisively above 99 U.S. cents, flirting with one-to-one parity with the American dollar for the first time since November 1976. (AP Photo/Ryan Remiorz,...   (Associated Press)

The Canadian dollar reached parity with its US counterpart for the first time in over 30 years yesterday. As recently as March 2002, $1 American bought $1.60 Canadian, but the struggling US economy and the recent interest rate cut have pulled the greenback down, while increased demand for Canadian products such as wheat, oil and coal have buoyed the Loonie.

"It really represents a very dramatic reversal of fortune from 10 years ago when our resource economy made us look rust belt compared to the technological dynamo of the U.S. economy," an economist tells the Canadian Press. "Canadians are getting richer relative to the US." (More US economy stories.)

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