Canada's Dollar Falls the Most Since at Least 1950 on Oil, Gold

By Chris Fournier

Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Canada's currency fell and is poised for its worst monthly performance in almost six decades as commodities including oil, natural gas and gold slumped.

The Canadian dollar weakened 13 percent in October, the most since at least 1950, according to Bloomberg and Bank of Canada data. Crude oil, which accounts for 21 percent of the weighting in the central bank's Commodity Price Index, has weakened 37 percent this month.

``This was a month when paradigms were reassessed,'' said David Watt, a senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets in Toronto. ``We were part of the global growth story over the past few years and now that's taking on water quickly. Commodity prices are getting buried and the Canadian dollar is getting hammered.''

The Canadian dollar depreciated by as much as 3 percent to C$1.2378 per U.S. dollar, from C$1.2003 yesterday. It last traded at C$1.2261 at 8:02 a.m. in Toronto. One Canadian dollar buys 81.56 U.S. cents.

The currency pared its monthly loss this week, rising 4.2 percent. Watt predicts Canada's dollar will weaken to C$1.30.

To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Montreal at cfournier3@bloomberg.net