TORONTO (Reuters) – The Canadian dollar weakened on Tuesday to its lowest level in nearly three weeks against its U.S. counterpart, as oil fell and the prospect of a major spending package to tackle America’s infrastructure needs broadly bolstered the greenback.
The Canadian dollar was trading 0.4% lower at 1.2633 to the greenback, or 79.16 U.S. cents, having touched its weakest level since March 10 at 1.2646.
“Nothing can keep up with the U.S. dollar,” said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex LLC. “The U.S. fiscal foot is on the accelerator, the monetary foot is on the accelerator.”
U.S. President Joe Biden is set to outline on Wednesday how he intends to pay for a $3 trillion to $4 trillion infrastructure plan. Accelerating vaccinations have also boosted the U.S. economic outlook.
Canada sends about 75% of its exports to the United States, while the loonie has gained 0.8% against the greenback this year, the best performance among G10 currencies.
“I wouldn’t be too pessimistic about Canada,” Chandler said. “A lot of people think at next month’s meeting the Bank of Canada may outline plans to taper their bond buying.”
A hefty Canadian job gain in February has helped give the Bank of Canada confidence that the economic recovery will become less choppy, Deputy Governor Toni Gravelle told Reuters last week.
Canada‘s GDP data for January is due on Wednesday.
The price of oil, one of Canada‘s major exports, lost ground as the Suez Canal reopened to traffic. U.S. crude prices settled 1.6% lower at $60.55 a barrel.
Pfizer Inc has agreed to accelerate the delivery of its COVID-19 vaccine to Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
Canada‘s 10-year yield rose 1.5 basis points to 1.550%, but hel well below the 14-month high notched earlier this month at 1.677%.
(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Alistair Bell and Jonathan Oatis)
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.
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.
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.
