Canadian Dollar And Business Outlook

By Commodity News Service Canada

Winnipeg, August 29 – The Canadian dollar opened weaker against
its US counterpart on Thursday, undermined by poor Canadian economic
data, market watchers said.
According to a Statistics Canada report, Canada’s account deficit
increased C$1.1 billion to C$14.6 billion in the second quarter.
Further weakness came from a US Department of Commerce report that
said the US GDP rose 2.5% in the second quarter, which is up from the
original estimate of 1.7%. The revised data raised expectations that
the US Federal Reserve could slow its monetary stimulus in the near-
future.
US jobless claims declined by 6,000 to 331,000 during the week
ended August 24, adding to the downward pressure.
Losses seen in commodities, including gold, copper and crude oil,
added to the loonie’s bearish tone.
At 8:46 CDT Thursday, the Canadian dollar was at US$0.9519 or
US$=C$1.0505 which compares with Wednesday’s North American close of
US$0.9537, or US$=C$1.0485.
Traders are also looking ahead to the release of Canada’s gross
domestic product for June on Friday. Economists are expecting a 0.4%
rise.
The TSX was up 17.78 points Thursday morning at 8:46 CDT, to sit
at 12,625.00.