TORONTO — Canada’s dollar broke another long-term record on Wednesday, dipping briefly below 71 cents US for the first time in more than 12 years. The Canadian dollar traded as low as 70.90 cents US just after 8 a.m. Eastern Time but later recovered somewhat. It was at 71.06 cents US — down 0.42 from Tuesday’s close — as North American stock markets opened lower at 9:30 a.m. Canada’s main stock market index, the S&P/TSX Composite in Toronto, plunged 141.84 points to 12,778.30. In New York, the Dow Jones average of 30 stocks was down 223.73 points at 16,934,93, the broader S&P 500 index dropped 23.83 points to 1,992.88 and Nasdaq was down 70.57 points at 4,820.86. On commodity markets, February crude oil contracts were down $1.35 at US34.62 per barrel. Gold contracts were up $13.20 at $1,091.60 per ounce and natural gas was up one cent at US$2.33 per million BTU. The last time Canada’s dollar was worth less than 71 cents US was in August 2003, as it was recovering from a historic low of 61.79 cents US set in January 2002. The loonie has been trading progressively lower for some time, partly because of the lower value of crude oil and other commodities, as well as slow economic growth and the U.S. dollar’s rise against most major currencies. On Tuesday, Bank of Montreal chief economist Douglas Porter told a gathering of leading economists that the loonie could fall below 70 cents US before it begins to recover.

Source