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Tax hikes still off the table

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says he’s worried about the volatility of the Canadian dollar but does not see it as a sufficient threat to his policy of not raising taxes.

OTTAWA — Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says he’s worried about the volatility of the Canadian dollar but does not see it as a sufficient threat to his policy of not raising taxes.

The finance minister said Wednesday he agreed with Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney’s views and approach in dealing with the surging loonie.

On Tuesday, Carney said the dollar was harming the economy and hinted strongly that he was prepared to keep the bank’s policy interest rate at the historic low of 0.25 per cent until at least next summer.

The dollar dropped two cents on the comments, but was up again 0.43 cents Wednesday to 95.6 US cents on a gain in oil prices.

Flaherty said he never believed the economy would bounce back strongly from the recession, and so far is being proven right.

”Our economy has stabilized but we have not seen evidence of firm, significant, entrenched economic growth in Canada,” he said during a scrum with reporters after question period in the Commons.