Canadian dollar and business outlook

By Phil Franz-Warkentin

Glacier FarmMedia MarketsFarm – The Canadian dollar was slightly weaker Wednesday morning, as soft domestic retail sales data pressured the currency.

At 8:39 a.m. CDT the Canadian dollar was trading at US$0.7299 or US$1=C$1.3701, which compares with Tuesday’s close of US$0.7314 or US$1=C$1.3673.

Retail sales in Canada dipped by 0.1 per cent in February compared to the precious month, coming in at C$66.7 billion, according to a report from Statistics Canada. Core retail sales were unchanged on the month.

Losses in crude oil also weighed on the energy-linked Canadian dollar, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil down by 0.46 per cent at US$82.98 per barrel.

The TSX was lacking any clear direction, down 7.78 points at 8:39 CDT to trade at 22,003.94 points.