The Canadian dollar edged lower against its U.S. counterpart on Friday as oil prices fell and data showed U.S. consumer inflation heating up in April, with the loonie ending its longest streak of weekly gains since 2016.
The loonie was trading 0.1% lower at 1.2078 to the greenback, or 82.80 U.S. cents, having traded in a range of 1.2063 to 1.2120. It was also down 0.1% for the week, after having climbed for eight straight weeks.
“We’ve had a really strong run in the Canadian dollar in the last one or two months,” said Rahim Madhavji, president at KnightsbridgeFX.com. “It’s hard to see what the next catalyst for the loonie is going to be going forward.”
Speculators have cut their bullish bets on the Canadian dollar for the first time in six weeks, data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed. As of May 25, net long positions had dipped to 44,811 contracts from 46,112 in the prior week.
U.S. consumer prices accelerated in the year to April, with a measure of underlying inflation blowing past the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.
The data is “potentially going to put pressure on the Fed to act sooner rather than later” to tighten policy, Madhavji said.
Canadian GDP data for the first quarter is due on Tuesday, with economists expecting an annualized increase of 7%. The data could help guide expectations for the Bank of Canada policy outlook.
The BoC is likely to cut its bond-buying program again this year, possibly as soon as July, as provinces ease curbs to contain the coronavirus pandemic and inflation pressures build, analysts said.
The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, settled 0.8% lower at $66.32 a barrel, giving back some of this week’s rally, while Canada’s 10-year yield was nearly unchanged at 1.489%.
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