Canadian Financial Close: Loonie up, crude oil lower

WINNIPEG – The Canadian dollar moved upward on Thursday.

The loonie closed at US$0.7363 or US$1=C$1.3582, up from US$0.7331 or US$1=C$1.3640 on Wednesday. The United States Dollar Index declined 0.31 of a point at 104.80.

After morning gains due to a leak and resulting shutdown of the Keystone oil pipeline, crude oil prices were lower on Thursday. Brent crude oil retreated US$0.91 per barrel to US$76.26. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil stepped back US$0.35 at US$71.66/barrel after hitting its lowest price since December 2021. Western Canadian Select (WCS) fell US$2.83/barrel to US$42.99.

The TSX/S&P Composite Index shed 4.03 points to 19,969.19.

Gold gained US$3.00 at US$1,801.00 per ounce.

Canada’s agricultural sector fared as follows:

Buhler Ind.                      unchanged      at $  1.75

Farmer’s Edge Inc.               up  $ 0.01     at $  0.34

Linamar Corp.                    up  $ 1.10     at $ 65.04

Maple Leaf Foods                 dn  $ 0.49     at $ 23.58

Nutrien Ltd.                     dn  $ 0.29     at $103.81

Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc.    up  $ 2.02     at $ 77.62

(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)