Canadian Dollar

The Canadian Dollar is the official currency of Canada. In October 2007, the Canadian dollar became slightly more valuable than the American dollar for the first time since the 1960s.

The increase in the value of the Canadian dollar is in part due to a decrease in the value of the American dollar, and in part because of strong economic performance. The Canadian federal government has consistently run large, net surpluses of tax revenues over expenditures, and is paying down their national debt (currently still at 457 billion Canadian dollars). The value of the economy also grows because of their wealth of natural resources, including oil and minerals. This appreciation of the dollar has caused difficulties for the manufacturing areas of the economy. The Canadian dollar has stayed relatively steady against the euro and other major currencies, while the US dollar has fallen.