Another historic low for the Canadian dollar, oil plummets
Posted January 15, 2016 7:10 am.
Last Updated January 15, 2016 7:11 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
TORONTO – Canada’s biggest stock market took a rapid descent this morning, dropping nearly three per cent in just the first minutes of trading.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX index was down 341.68 points — 2.8 per cent — shortly after the opening bell at 6:30 a.m. PT, joining declines in Asia, Europe and the United States.
The Canadian dollar fell below 69 cents US early today for the first time since 2003 as crude oil futures dropped below US$30 a barrel.
The loonie later regained ground, trading at 69.21 cents US, but that was still down 0.42 of a US cent below Thursday’s closing price.
On commodity markets, February crude oil futures traded at US$29.69 a barrel at about 6:30 a.m. PT and gold futures were up $21.30 at US$1.094.80.
In New York, the Dow Jones average of 30 stocks was down 1.9 per cent or 310.5 points at 16,068.55, while the S&P 500 index declined 1.7 per cent or 32.14 points to 1,889.70 and the Nasdaq dropped 3.2 per cent or 134.5 points to 4,138.48.
Get the latest on the markets in Money News with Richard Dettman at :26 and :56 past every hour.
