Canadian Financial Close: Loonie, crude oil fall further

Glacier FarmMedia | MarketsFarm – The Canadian dollar added to its losses on Friday, as it dropped more than one United States cent over the past week.

The loonie ended the day at US$0.6926 or US$1=C$1.4438, compared to US$0.6934 or US$1=C$1.4422 on Thursday.

Statistics Canada reported today that the country’s GDP increased by 2.6 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024, surpassing expectations from economists (1.9 per cent) and the Bank of Canada (1.8 per cent). Third quarter growth was upwardly revised to 2.2 per cent, while preliminary data suggested 0.3 per cent growth in January.

On Thursday, United States President Donald Trump reiterated his intentions to impose tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports on March 4. The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.84 of a point at 107.26.

The stronger U.S. dollar caused crude oil to decline, which put it on track for its worst month since Sept. 2024. Brent crude oil dropped US$0.86 at US$73.18 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate eased off by US$0.28 at US$70.07/barrel.

The TSX/S&P Composite Index surged 265.21 points at 25,393.45.

Gold fell $30.60 per ounce at US$2,865.30.

Canada’s agricultural sector fared as follows:

Buhler Ind.                      unchanged      at $  7.15

Farmer’s Edge Inc.               unchanged      at $  0.345

Linamar Corp.                    dn  $ 0.84     at $ 52.24

Maple Leaf Foods                 dn  $ 0.30     at $ 25.46

Nutrien Ltd.                     dn  $ 0.01     at $ 75.82

RB Global Inc.                   up  $ 2.98     at $147.98

(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)