Americans staying away from Canada as dollar climbs higher
Statistics Canada says overall trips by U.S. residents to Canada in March fell 1.6 per cent to 1.6 million trips and a high Canadian dollar is the culprit.
Overnight car travel from the U.S. was down 3.6 per cent to 525,000 trips, and same-day car travel was down 2.4 per cent to 545,000 — both the lowest levels on record since data began being tracked in 1972.
Conversely, Canadian residents were taking more trips to the U.S. — and other countries as well — in March.
U.S. travel by Canadian residents was up 0.1 per cent to four million trips, as a 0.4 per cent rise in same-day car trips was almost completely offset by a decline in overnight travel.
Statistics Canada said the Canadian dollar’s average value in March was $1.02 U.S., up 1.1 per cent from February and the highest since November 2007. As well, it said gasoline prices in the U.S. rose 10.9 per cent that month.
