Loonnie falls to 13-month low

TORONTO, Sept. 11 (UPI) -- Canada's dollar fell to a near 13-month low Thursday after crude oil prices continued to slip and a government report showed the nation's trade surplus shrank.

The Canadian currency ended the day at 1.0765 Canadian dollars to one U.S. dollar, or 92.89 U.S. cents to a Canadian dollar, down from 1.0697 Canadian dollars to a U.S. dollar, or 93.48 U.S. cents, Wednesday.

The currency -- dubbed the loonie because of the image of a common loon, a well-known Canadian bird, on the $1 coin -- fell as low as 1.0821 Canadian dollars against the greenback, or 92.41 U.S. cents, earlier in the day -- its lowest level since Aug. 16, 2007.

Canada's dollar is heavily influenced by demand for crude oil and other commodities the country exports.

Crude futures slid $1.71, or 1.7 percent of its value, to settle at $100.87 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange amid demand worries. At one point futures fell as low as $100.10 a barrel.

Crude has lost 31.5 percent of its value since its July 11 peak of $147.27 and has fallen more than 5 percent of its value in the last three trading sessions alone.

Analysts attribute the drop to fears of a global slowdown, which could reduce consumer demand.

Canada's trade surplus fell to $4.85 billion in July from June's revised $5.64 billion, with energy-product exports falling 1.5 percent to $12.8 billion, due in part to record-high oil prices, Statistics Canada said.