CAD now worth more than USD

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There was another first in three decades for the loonie today. It closed daily trading above the U.S. greenback for the first time since 1976. The dollar closed the day at $1.0052 US.
The loonie has soared in recent months as the American dollar has weakened because of a crisis in its housing market due to defaults on subprime loans.
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I've never knew that the CAD was ever equal to the USD, so this is actually quite a surprise to me, especially since it was only worth 2/3rds of the USD only a few years ago, if I recall correctly. At the same time, it makes me wonder just what is causing it? Is it partially attributed to the trade imbalance with China/Japan, or what? It can't all be because of the housing market collapse.
 
Yay!!!

I know some Canadians are mad about this though. They're worried that we won't get as many American tourists. Pfffffff, if we're doing that well compared to the USA why do we need their stinking tourists? :lol:

...And with the 2010 Olympics just around the corner for Vancouver, everybody's gonna come here anyway.
 
It's a great time to make a large purchase for us then.
 
The Aussie dollar is only about 11c away from the USD too, doesn't seem like much, but since it was more than 50c away in 2001, it might not take long. My girlfriend and I are planning a trip to the US next year because of it. I read the gap between interest rates is one of the reasons for this.
 
Wow what the hell happened? I used to be able to go to Canada and buy anything and it was worlds cheaper. I even remember when I could get $1.50 CND for $1.00 USD. *sigh* shows how great our economy is and how much better the rest of the world's is. I just can't wait till I'm out of school and I can go somewhere else to live where I will actually make money.
 
Wow what the hell happened? I used to be able to go to Canada and buy anything and it was worlds cheaper. I even remember when I could get $1.50 CND for $1.00 USD. *sigh* shows how great our economy is and how much better the rest of the world's is. I just can't wait till I'm out of school and I can go somewhere else to live where I will actually make money.

That sounds about right.
 
Wow what the hell happened? I used to be able to go to Canada and buy anything and it was worlds cheaper. I even remember when I could get $1.50 CND for $1.00 USD. *sigh* shows how great our economy is and how much better the rest of the world's is. I just can't wait till I'm out of school and I can go somewhere else to live where I will actually make money.

You're nuts if you think you can't make money in America.
 
Man you canadians and aussies get pretty screwed with auto prices don't ya? :crazy:
 
Forgot to mention a funny story:

A few days ago we went shopping in the States when the Dollar was at par, and we thought we might as well check out the Wal-Mart Supercenter while we were there. They wouldn't accept our Canadian money, for some reason. We talked to the manager as well, no dice. I guess they didn't want their greenbacks contaminated by filthy, colourful Canadian ones! :sly:
 
Is the USD legal tender in Canada? I seem to remember them accepting greenbacks...

Anyway, we invented credit cards for a reason.
 
Glass is half full, glass is half full, glass if half full...... Hey! Now's the time for American export business to boom! Yesssss!
 
💡 Or maybe because its not legal tender here?

Probably. I don't see how it could not be 'legal' though, money is money. Just convert the bills at the bank FFS, LMAO. :lol: I guess the consumer should do that themselves before hand, but when stores Like Fred Meyer and such will take Canadian, why bother? It's not like it's monopoly money or something...
 
Probably. I don't see how it could not be 'legal' though, money is money. Just convert the bills at the bank FFS, LMAO. :lol: I guess the consumer should do that themselves before hand, but when stores Like Fred Meyer and such will take Canadian, why bother? It's not like it's monopoly money or something...

As far as the US is concerned, it IS Monopoly money. Yes, it can be exchanged, but what's the rate gonna be by the time the deposit is made, and what's the fee for the exchange.

Paper money is nothing more than credit from the government which issued it. (Once upon a time it was backed by precious metals, but now it's just, "Hey, here's a buck!")

As for Canadians accepting US currency, if they accepted it at a 1-to-1 when the C$ was nowhere near the US$, and the US citizen was dumb enough to spend it, then of course they would accept it. If the C$ becomes worth 1.5 to 2 US$, I'll take Canadian all day, at face value.

We have a history of Canadians slipping us their coins, and we got shafted for it. It's not a shaft any more, but it'll come back.

Retail pricing has not reflected any of this, so something in Canada now costs 1.5 to 2 times what it costs in the US. A major purchase, like a car, could be obtained in the US and imported by the buyer to Canada for less than he can by it at home. It'll catch back up before too long.
 
Man you canadians and aussies get pretty screwed with auto prices don't ya? :crazy:

Absolutely - even moreso now with the dollar rising. The retail price of imported consumer goods is not adjusting in sync with the exchange rate. Car prices haven't dropped substantially over the past 4 or 5 years despite the fact that our dollar has gained 40 cents on the American dollar in that time. It is substantially cheaper to purchase a car in the US and drive it up.

This is an opportune time for American companies exporting to Canada to cash in on us, and a scary time for Canadian manufacturing and exporters. Great news for Canadian tourists though.
 
I'm sure the money that we keep on printing to fund the war has nothing to do with the decline of our American dollar.....:scared:
 
Wow what the hell happened? I used to be able to go to Canada and buy anything and it was worlds cheaper. I even remember when I could get $1.50 CND for $1.00 USD. *sigh* shows how great our economy is and how much better the rest of the world's is. I just can't wait till I'm out of school and I can go somewhere else to live where I will actually make money.
That sounds about right.
You guys have got to get out of union central.

And just remember, if you go to another country where you can make more money the governments will take even more of it.


Although, I have to say I don't understand how anyone can not make money in America when they try. Maybe the job market in Michigan just isn't that great?


As for the USD dropping, I can't say I am too surprised. The war is playing a part and then as we get closer to a global economy it would be inevitable as we are increasingly producing less within our own borders. Foreign competition is becoming huge and unless we start getting our stuff in the US up to par with foreign made goods it will only continue. There is a lot to be done to improve this situation but first we have to get businesses, politicians, and unions to all quit bickering and lay out what is actually best for everyone and then they need to stop dragging their feet on the issues. I don't see it happening any time soon though.
 
I'm sure the money that we keep on printing to fund the war has nothing to do with the decline of our American dollar.....:scared:

Actually, it isn't really caused by inflation. The decline of the dollar w.r.t. foreign currency has mostly to do with the interest rates here in America being significantly lower than overseas (managed by the Fed to prevent recession/inflation). The effect of the value of the dollar changing is good and bad.

The Good: It makes US goods and manufacturing cheaper and more desirable for other countries. That boosts exports and jobs.

The Bad: An increase in prices for imports can cause inflation.
 
Although, I have to say I don't understand how anyone can not make money in America when they try. Maybe the job market in Michigan just isn't that great?

We have the highest unemployment rate in the country and our government is bankrupt...it is that bad here. No one is hiring. In just my area alone the Volkswagen is moving it's American headquarters and Comeria, our largest banking firm is leaving as well. That's just with in 20 miles of me. Not to mention the thousands of Chrysler employees that have been let go since the beginning of the year.

Southeast Michigan's economy has got to be close to 75% automotive based whether it's suppliers or whatever. When GM, Ford, and Chrysler don't make money people here no longer have jobs. Yes you can find jobs here but if I had a masters engineering degree I wouldn't want to be working part time at the local Home Depot.
 
As far as the US is concerned, it IS Monopoly money. Yes, it can be exchanged, but what's the rate gonna be by the time the deposit is made, and what's the fee for the exchange.

Paper money is nothing more than credit from the government which issued it. (Once upon a time it was backed by precious metals, but now it's just, "Hey, here's a buck!")

As for Canadians accepting US currency, if they accepted it at a 1-to-1 when the C$ was nowhere near the US$, and the US citizen was dumb enough to spend it, then of course they would accept it. If the C$ becomes worth 1.5 to 2 US$, I'll take Canadian all day, at face value.

We have a history of Canadians slipping us their coins, and we got shafted for it. It's not a shaft any more, but it'll come back.

Retail pricing has not reflected any of this, so something in Canada now costs 1.5 to 2 times what it costs in the US. A major purchase, like a car, could be obtained in the US and imported by the buyer to Canada for less than he can by it at home. It'll catch back up before too long.

Okay, I can see that. If someone from Japan gave the cashier $40 worth of Japanese Yen, I can see the problem. :lol:

In northern Washington though, almost all the stores have accepted Canadian money for decades. They're that well-researched on the currency exchange rate. Some malls, like Bellis Fair Mall in Belingham, almost lost all of their business when the Canadian dollar went down. They are no doubt hungry for us now that the dollar is par, and no one is going to refuse an extra customer just because they only have Canadian money.

We do bring some American money on our trips down but we often bring fewer than we need.
 
I like canada. I wish I coulda gone when our money was worth more. I went there when I could get 1.04CAD for each USD...
 
I remember only a couple years ago when Canada's money was worth about $1.25 US. This is weird.

But the US dollar is still prettier. Smells amazing, too.
 
Wasn't the dollar at about $1.40CAD a few years ago?

I sure like the US greenbacks. They all look like they belong together. Other systems have their advantages too, like the Euro.
 
Michigan is not America. Don't be quite so self-centric. Michigan has some problems at the moment, but it's not the same everywhere.

Whoa there, now!

No, its not the same everywhere, but its certainly a problem. Joey has it rough on the East side of the State. They're running out of jobs, money, and its certainly showing with the rise in crime rates and drug use. Let it get any worse and we're going to need Robocop and OCP to clean up Detroit again...

...The big problem in Michigan is that we didn't diversify our economy to the extent that it should have been. Here in Grand Rapids we've seen a collapse of not only the automotive industries (most of what we do is third-party contracts), but also the furniture industry, part of what my city was built on. Too much competition from Asian markets is driving Steelcase out of business, and we're suffering...

But, things are FAR better here than what it is anywhere else in the State. Our booming medical field is bringing in investment left and right, and being as close as we are to the lake, Toyota decided to build a factory about two hours south of here.

===

The point that I'm getting as it that although the economy sucks here in Michigan, and although it may not be as bad in other cities/states/etc, there is no reason why Michigan needs to suffer like this. Time after time, after time we (as in the State government) decide to screw things up with stupid policies... Furthermore, the Feds do absolutely nothing to help our case further. Yes, I'm an advocate for the free market, but when our jobs are getting sucked out of here with a Mexican-built Hoover vacuum, thats a problem...

...So, we reserve the right to belly-ache. Sure, things are good down in PCB, you've got the tourist dollars funding your town. But when literally NOTHING is going on (take Flint for example), thats when you start to wonder...

===

The good news is with the CAD growing and the US dollar shrinking is that jobs will likely return to the United States (hopefully Michigan?) for cheaper labor costs. GM has already said they plan to move more production back to Michigan, but nevertheless, there are things that are closing as well. Ford and Chrysler on the other hand, well, God only knows what they're doing.

Lets hope that with currencies balancing out things have a reason to get better, but then again, its hard to say...
 
The good news is with the CAD growing and the US dollar shrinking is that jobs will likely return to the United States (hopefully Michigan?) for cheaper labor costs. GM has already said they plan to move more production back to Michigan, but nevertheless, there are things that are closing as well. Ford and Chrysler on the other hand, well, God only knows what they're doing.

I wouldn't count on that too soon. With socialized health care going on up there, it probably winds up being quite a bit cheaper to manufacture up there. I know my Seminar prof was whining about some insurance company clearing out of Holland so they could dodge the cost of worker's health care.
 
Michigan is not America. Don't be quite so self-centric. Michigan has some problems at the moment, but it's not the same everywhere.

I didn't know that, I thought for sure America was Michigan.

But think about how much of a role the auto industry plays in the American economy? The Big Three themselves, the parts companies, the suppliers, the engineering firms, the oil companies, and so on. If Michigan is failing it's affecting a major industry in the country which has a ripple effect.

Also Detroit is one of only a few major cities that actually boarder Canada so it seem to be right to talk about it here. Windsor is, well was, part of the reason the auto industry was hurting. It was cheaper to pay Canadian workers because of a weaker Canadian dollar, many jobs moved there. Now that GM, Ford, and Chrysler have so many jobs there and the American dollar is weaker it actually cost them more to have a car built in Canada apposed to America.
 
It's expensive to do business in the automotive industry in both countries. Plants won't be moving to Michigan: they're going to Mexico and Korea.
 
My mom retired from General Motors (Delphi Corporation -- Fuel Injector Plant in Coopersville, Michigan) so we felt the effects of her plant closing, and the loss of jobs here. It's tough with a state that relied heavily, almost soley on blue collar work. It's next to impossible to get a job here in Grand Rapids and Walker.
 
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