Canadian dollar could fall to record low of 59 cents U.S.: top analyst

One of Bloomberg’s top financial analysts is predicting the loonie will fall to record lows this year.

Maquarie Group Ltd’s David Boyle told Bloomberg business we can expect the Canadian dollar to drop to as low as 59 cents U.S. by the end of the year.

The lowest the Canadian dollar has ever been was 62 cents U.S. back in 2002.

Boyle’s track record is pretty spot-on too. He predicted in February of 2015 the dollar would fall below 70 cents U.S. sometime in the next year, and it did just that on Tuesday for the first time since April of 2003.

To give you an idea of how long ago that was, 50 Cent’s In Da Club was topping the charts, Sabrina the Teenage Witch was just ending, and Justin Bieber was only nine years old.

The price of oil continues to drop as well. Crude oil is trading at just over $30 a barrel as of Wednesday morning, down more than three per cent.

As the loonie continues to drop, many aspects of the lives of Canadians will be affected. Professor Werner Antweiler with UBC’s Sauder School of Business told Vancity Buzz the price of commodities will increase, particularly fruits and vegetables.

The negative effects of the low dollar largely trickles down to lower-income people, said Antweiler.

Meanwhile, Canadian exports may gain more traction on an international level, allowing for gains in the manufacturing sector in Ontario and Quebec.

And despite Boyle’s accurate predictions, Antweiler warns the markets move in erratic ways, making it difficult to tell what will happen next.