Bank of Canada's Stephen Poloz named 'Business Newsmaker of the Year'

OTTAWA -- Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz is The Canadian Press Business Newsmaker of the Year.

Poloz was the top choice of senior business journalists as he helped guide the economy through a turbulent year.

It started in January when he surprised financial markets by cutting the central bank's trend-setting rate in the face of plummeting world oil prices.

He defended the stunner as a shield to blunt the "unambiguously negative" effects of the price slide on the oil-exporting country.

In selecting Poloz, Daniel Tencer from the Huffington Post Canada said the central bank governor's decisions this year will have more impact on a larger number of Canadians than those of any other business leaders.