Canadian dollar and business outlook

By Phil Franz-Warkentin

Glacier FarmMedia | MarketsFarm–The Canadian dollar was slightly firmer Wednesday morning as currency traders await the latest interest rate announcement from the United States Federal Reserve.

A rate cut is widely anticipated, with but the size of that reduction remains to be seen. Accompanying statements will also be followed closely for hints on future moves.

At 8:41 a.m. CDT the Canadian dollar was trading at US$0.7362 or US$1=C$1.3583, which compares with Tuesday’s close of US$0.7355 or US$1=C$1.3596.

Foreign investors increased their holdings of Canadian securities by C$11.0 billion in July while Canadian acquisitions of foreign securities came in at C$4.5 billion, according to a report from Statistics Canada. As a result, the Canadian economy saw a net inflow of C$6.5 billion during the month.

Crude oil was softer in early activity, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil down by 0.97 per cent at US$70.50 per barrel.

The TSX was weaker, down 54.82 points at 8:41 CDT to trade at 23,622.88.