

The Canadian Press





TORONTO -- The Canadian dollar closed at a post-recession low today after the Bank of Canada cut its key interest rate and lowered its forecast for the economy.

The loonie ended the day at 77.40 cents US, down 1.09 cents from the previous close, a level not seen since March 2009 when Canada was in the midst of a deep recession.

Despite the fall in the Canadian dollar, the S&P/TSX composite index ended the day up 62.88 points at 14,662.88.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 3.41 points at 18,050.17, the Nasdaq index fell 5.95 points to 5,098.94, and the S&P 500 dropped 1.55 points to 2,107.40.

On the commodity markets, the August gold contract fell $6.10 to US$1,147.40 an ounce while the August crude contract was down $1.63 to US$51.41 a barrel.

The August contract for natural gas rose 7.8 cents to US$2.92.