Gas producers and households were both hit hard in 2014. With low gas prices and record household debt Canadians may continue to suffer into 2015. CCTV’s Kristiaan Yeo reported this story from Toronto.

Reporters Notebook: Canadian gas producers, households hit hard in 2014

Gas producers and households were both hit hard in 2014. With low gas prices and record household debt Canadians may continue to suffer into 2015. CCTV's Kristiaan Yeo reported this story from Toronto.

2014 saw oil lose almost half of its market value in a matter of months. While drivers at the gas pumps may have jumped for joy, Canada’s oil producers were hardly celebrating.

There’s little hope of a rebound any time soon after OPEC said it would not prop up prices with a cut in production. Canadian producers must now find ways to cut costs to maintain some profit margins from costly shale oil production.

The Canadian government still has a lot riding on the success of its global oil ventures, including controversial pipelines like the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway.

These projects have proven unpopular in Canada and around the world, as attention turns to a new global climate change pact deal set to begin in Paris next December. Canada is at risk to fall behind in the shift towards a carbon neutral economy.

Even its most thirsty buyer of oil, the U.S. is rethinking its relationship with the black stuff.

It’s not just falling oil prices or waning global demand that concern Canadian economists. Another threat is closer to home. Household debt hit a record high in the summer, despite repeated calls from the Bank of Canada for consumers to cut back on borrowing. The credit boom is being driven by the housing market, which many believe is over-inflated.

While the Bank of Canada can forget the prospect of an interest rate rise, it can’t do much to stop a much-feared collapse in property prices. With so much consumer credit leveraged on the Canadian housing market, some said this is a bubble about to burst.