Canadians dropping shopping in U.S., consumer watchers say

As the once sky-high loonie plummets back to Earth, one expert says Canadians appear to have put a "screeching halt" to their cross-border shopping.

Bruce Cran, president of the Consumers' Association of Canada, said he drove from his home in Vancouver to Bellingham, Wash., on Wednesday — when the loonie fell below 80 cents US for the first time in more than three years.

"It's my opinion that [cross-border shopping] has come to a screeching halt," Cran said.

"There was a substantial absence of Canadian vehicles in the parking lot at the big Bellis Fair shopping centre. This is an instant reaction."

The manager of a Target store in the popular cross-border shopping destination of Buffalo, N.Y., said she has "definitely" noticed that fewer Canadians are coming to shop.

"There's definitely been less traffic," said Jen, who declined to give her last name.

According to Statistics Canada, Canada's international travel deficit — the difference between spending by Canadians abroad and spending by foreigners in Canada — increased substantially in the last half of 2007 as the loonie soared toward parity and beyond and millions of Canadians crossed the border to shop.

Experts say this deficit will likely decrease as a lower dollar prompts more Canadians to buy at home.

The Canadian dollar declined 0.09 cent to 79.61 cents US early Thursday afternoon. It has lost 4.64 cents this week alone.