The USD/CAD currency pair today rallied higher after the release of Canada’s building permits data for the month of March released by Statistics Canada, which did not meet expectations. The Canadian dollar was largely weaker against the US dollar even as crude oil prices faced uncertainty regarding the renewal of oil supply cuts by OPEC countries.
The currency pair gained over 80 points at the height of its rally even as the US dollar as tracked by the US Dollar Index, which was trading above 99.00 for the better part of the day.
The release of the Canadian building permits report for the month of March triggered the currency pair’s rally as the US dollar strengthened against the loonie. The building permits for March decreased by 5.8% versus the expected increase of 2.8% and the previous contraction of 2.8%.
The currency pair was also affected by the lower crude oil prices given the uncertainty regarding the renewal of oil supply cuts by OPEC countries. The US dollar was stronger against the loonie despite the lack of any economic data to support its bullish trend. The expectation of a Fed rate hike in June is likely responsible for the greenback’s bullish bias.
The currency pair is likely to be affected by speeches from Federal Reserve members Robert S. Kaplan and Eric S. Rosengren scheduled for later today.
The USD/CAD was trading at 1.3733 as at 16:32 GMT having retraced some of its gains from a high of 1.3745. The EUR/CAD was trading at 1.4935 having dropped from a high of 1.4980.
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