Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) and Canandian Dollar (CAD)
There are many Hong Kongers working and studying in Canada. In major cities like Vancouver and Toronto, it is common to find Chinese who speaks Cantonese, which is the language used nationally by Hong Kong.
With such close ties between these 2 countries (at least for Hong Kongers), the exchange rate between the Hong Kong Dollar (HKD, “Hongkers”) and the Canadian Dollar (CAD, “Loonie”) is therefore something that requires special attention.
The exchange rate between the Hong Kong Dollar compared against the Canadian Dollar is actually simpler than what most people imagine. The Hong Kong Dollar is pegged within a trading band with the US Dollar, with a lower limit of 7.85 HKD = 1 US Dollar and a higher limit of 7.75 HKD = 1 US Dollar. As the variance is small (1.29%), it is usually sufficient for the average Hong Konger to pay attention to just the exchange rate between the US Dollar and the Canadian Dollar instead.
The comparison is also made easier by the fact that Canadian Dollar and the US Dollar are trading near parity. Currently, 1 US Dollar trades at 1.0789 Canadian Dollar and 1 Canadian Dollar = 7.183 Hong Kong Dollar.
As the Canadian Dollar is fore-casted to be more expensive that the US Dollar in the medium term, Hong Kongers studying in Canada may soon be worse off as this will mean higher college fees in Hong Kong Dollar terms. Conversely, this trend bodes well for Hong Kongers working in Canada (and being paid in Canadian Dollar) as they convert their salary into Hong Kong Dollar. The wish to own an apartment in Hong Kong may now come sooner than later.
