Canadian dollar and business outlook

By Phil Franz-Warkentin

 Glacier FarmMedia MarketsFarm – The Canadian dollar was holding near unchanged Friday morning, lacking any clear direction ahead of the weekend.

At 9:10 a.m. CDT the Canadian dollar was trading at US$0.7289 or US$1=C$1.3719, which compares with Thursday’s close of US$0.7291 or US$1=C$1.3715.

Canadian housing starts increased by 16 per cent in July, hitting a seasonally adjusted rate of 279,508 units, according to a report from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The starts beat market expectations.

Crude oil was weaker in early activity, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil down by 1.71 per cent at US$76.82 per barrel.

The TSX was steady, up by less than one point at 9:10 CDT to trade at 23,032.83.