Canadian Financial Close: C$ steady

By MarketsFarm

WINNIPEG, Feb. 2 (MarketsFarm) – The Canadian dollar held relatively steady on Thursday, as investors squared positions ahead of updated employment data out on Friday.

The Canadian dollar settled at US$0.7512 or US$1=C$1.3312 on Thursday, which compares with Wednesday’s close of US$0.7507 or US$1=C$1.3321.

An estimated C$10.3 billion worth of building permits were issued in Canada in December, which was down by 7.3 per cent from the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to a report from Statistics Canada. Both the residential and non-residential sectors posted declines.

Crude oil was slightly softer, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil down by 0.8 per cent at US$75.79 per barrel.

The TSX Composite Index was weaker, down 10.61 points or 0.05 per cent at the close at 20,740.44 points.

Canada’s agricultural sector performed as follows:

Buhler Ind.———————-up  $ 0.08    at $  2.10

Linamar Corp.——————–up  $ 1.71    at $ 73.55

Maple Leaf Foods—————–up  $ 0.41    at $ 26.41

Nutrien Ltd.———————up  $ 1.33    at $112.45

Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc.—-up  $ 0.04    at $ 82.52

Farmers Edge Inc.—————-    $ 0.00    at $  0.235

(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)