MORE CANADIAN SHOPPERS ARE STAYING HOME

More Canadians are shopping at home for the holidays, forcing stores in United States border cities to rely more on American customers.

The falling value of Canada's dollar is the main cause of the decline in cross-border shopping. The exchange rate on the Canadian dollar is as low as 75 cents at some US stores, down almost 15 cents from a year ago.

Statistics Canada, a government agency, reported that the number of Canadians taking one-day trips to the US dropped to 4.89 million in September, down 120,000 from a year earlier.