Economy

Canadian dollar dips as Fed’s new guidance weighs

Published

3 years ago

June 25, 2021

The Canadian dollar edged lower against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday as investors continued to take in the Federal Reserve’s more hawkish guidance, with the loonie giving back some of this week’s gains.

The loonie was trading 0.1% lower at 1.2323 to the greenback, or 81.15 U.S. cents. It has gained 1.1% since the start of the week after declining sharply last week.

“It could be more consolidative, a bit choppy in the short term here as markets continue to digest last week’s FOMC,” said Erik Nelson, a currency strategist at Wells Fargo in New York.

“We’d expect some downward pressure on the loonie in the short term.”

In a surprise move, the Fed last week projected it would begin hiking rates in 2023 rather than in 2024. Investors have been struggling to interpret signals from the central bank about how hot it is willing to let inflation run.

Canada is a major producer of commodities, including oil and copper, which have benefited from Fed stimulus.

Copper fell for the first time this week, pressured by mixed signals from the Fed, but oil settled 0.3% higher at $73.30 a barrel.

Confidence among Canadian exporters has surged to its highest level in more than 20 years, amid mounting optimism that a sustained global economic recovery is underway, a survey by Export Development Canada showed.

Preliminary data for May from Statistics Canada showed factory sales rising 1% from April and wholesale trade up 1.1%.

Canadian government bond yields eased across a flatter curve. The 10-year was down about 1 basis point at 1.414% but holding well above the 3-1/2-month low it hit last Friday at 1.364%.

(Reporting by Fergal Smith; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Dan Grebler)

Economy

S&P/TSX composite gains almost 100 points, U.S. stock markets also higher

Published

3 days ago

September 13, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.

The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.

The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)

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Economy

Statistics Canada reports wholesale sales higher in July

Published

3 days ago

September 13, 2024

Anne Joseph

OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.

The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.

The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.

The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.

In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.

Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

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Economy

S&P/TSX composite up more than 150 points, U.S. stock markets mixed

Published

4 days ago

September 12, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.

The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.

The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.

The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.

The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)

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