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5/1/2008 4:48:45 PM The Canadian dollar weakened against its major counterparts during New York trading as oil plunged sharply for the third straight session on Thursday. The loonie fell to a ½ month low. Against the yen, the loonie fell to a weekly low.

Oil plunged sharply for the third straight session on Thursday, but pared much of its early losses. Light sweet crude for June delivery closed at $112.52, down 94 cents on the session. Prices touched as low as $110.46, its lowest intra-day mark since April 14, before an afternoon rebound.

Crude has dropped sharply throughout the week amid the release of data showing a rise in weekly inventories and another interest rate cut. Prices closed at $113.46, down $2.17 on the session. This came two days after oil touched a record high of $119.93 a barrel.

On Wednesday, Statistics Canada showed that Canadian gross domestic product edged down 0.2 % in February following a 0.6 % increase in January. The decrease came as a surprise to economists, who had expected a 0.2 % increase.

The Canadian dollar fell to a ½ month low against the greenback. At about 10:40 am ET, the loonie hit a low of 1.0239 against the greenback. Thereafter, the loonie moved sideways. As of now, the Canadian dollar is worth 1.0195 versus the buck.

US initial jobless claims rose to 380,000 in the week ended April 26th from the previous week`s revised figure of 345,000. Economists had been expecting jobless claims to increase to 360,000 from the 342,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Activity in the manufacturing sector continued to contract in the month of April. The ISM said its index of activity in the manufacturing sector came in at 48.6 in April, unchanged from March, with a reading below 50 indicating a contraction in the sector. Economists had expected the index to edge down to 48.0.

Meanwhile, personal spending increased by 0.4 % in March after edging up 0.1 % in February. Economists had been expecting a more modest increase in personal spending of about 0.2 %.

At the same time, personal income rose 0.3 % in March following a 0.5 % increase in the previous month. The increase came in a little below economist estimates of an increase of about 0.4 %.

The loonie moved away from yesterday`s 5-week high of 1.5630 against the euro. 10:40 am ET, the loonie hit a intra-day low of 1.5816 against the euro, compared to an intra-day high of 1.5647 hit in early New York. As of now, the Canadian dollar is worth 1.5769 versus the euro.

Against the aussie, the Canadian dollar showed little weakness. At about 9:00 am ET, the loonie touched 0.9540 against the aussie, up from 0.9452 hit in early New York. Thereafter, the loonie bounced in a range between 0.9535 and 0.9490. Currently, the Canadian dollar is quoted around 0.9517 against the Australian dollar.

The Reserve Bank of Australia reported yesterday that the credit among the private sector in Australia increased by a seasonally adjusted 0.8% in March compared to the previous month. On a yearly basis, it was up 14.9%.

The Canadian dollar fell to a weekly low against the yen. At about 10:40 am ET, the loonie-yen pair dropped to a low of 101.60. Thereafter, the pair reversed some of the losses. Currently, the loonie-yen pair is worth 102.40.

Currency traders considered the Bank of Japan`s decision to leave interest rates unchanged again. The Bank of Japan unanimously decided to leave its overnight call rate target unchanged at 0.5% yesterday after a two-day meeting. The central bank`s decision came amid continuing uncertainty over the outlook for the global economy and financial markets.

Japanese new vehicle sales rebounded in April after slumping to the lowest level in 33 years in the year ended March 31. The new vehicle sales grew 6.9% in April, reversing a 3.3% decline in March. Total number of vehicles sold accounted for 232,992, up from last year`s 217,911.

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Loonie Sees Little Change Against Other Majors [USD/CAD]
4/22/2008 4:06:08 PM The Canadian dollar saw little-change versus other majors on Tuesday as the Bank of Canada said that it lowered its target for the overnight rate by 50 basis points to 3 percent. The Canadian currency was little changed amid volatile trading against its U.S. counterpart and also little-moved against the euro and yen.

Citing concerns about the impact of the slowdown in the U.S. economy, the Bank of Canada announced on Tuesday that it decided to lower its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point. The interest rate cut was widely anticipated by analysts.

This marks the bank`s second consecutive 50 basis point rate cut. In its accompanying statement, the bank said that global economic growth has weakened due to the sharp slowdown in the U.S. economy and ongoing dislocations in global financial markets.

The loonie and greenback were little-changed in the afternoon amid choppy trading. The currencies have been range-bound since late last week and moved at 1.0072 in the mid-afternoon. Traders considered a report from the National Association of Retailers showing that March sales of previously owned homes fell 2 percent to 4.93 million.

The loonie edged lower against the euro on Tuesday, continuing its recent weakness. The Canadian currency has been trending down since late last week and moved at 1.6103 in the mid-afternoon. Although there was no major economic news planned for the day, traders considered comments from European Central Bank officials.

The loonie was range-bound throughout the day with the Japanese yen. The pair moved at 102.21 in the mid-afternoon. Traders considered industry data showing that Japanese supermarket sales grew 1.4% annually in March.

BoC Signals More Rate Cuts To Come, Projects `Deeper And Protracted` US Recession [USD/CAD]
4/22/2008 9:10:55 AM The loonie eased slightly against the dollar Tuesday morning in New York after the Bank of Canada lowered its key overnight lending rate by 50 basis points to 3 percent, as expected. The loonie slipped to an intraday low of 1.0110 after hovering near 1.006 in early dealing.

In its accompanying statement, the BoC signalled more interest rate cuts in the medium-term. The central bank pointed out that growth in the global economy has weakened, reflecting the effects of a sharp slowdown in the U.S. economy and ongoing dislocations in global financial markets.

The statement also noted that growth in the Canadian economy has also moderated as buoyant growth in domestic demand, supported by high employment levels and improved terms of trade, has been substantially offset by the fall in net exports. The Bank also projected a deeper and more protracted slowdown in the U.S. economy.

Canadian Dollar Bounces Back Against Majors [USD/CAD]
4/17/2008 7:14:39 AM Following the announcement of the Canadian February CPI report, the Canadian dollar slid against its major counterparts, but reversed the direction shortly. As of now, the loonie is worth 0.9383 against the Aussie, 1.0010 against the US dollar, 1.5932 against the euro and 102.34 against the yen

Loonie Reverses Recent Losses Against US Dollar [USD/CAD]
4/14/2008 6:51:09 AM Monday morning, the Canadian dollar reversed the losses it suffered in Asian trading against the US dollar. At about 6.35 am Eastern Time, the loonie hit a 3-day high of 1.0218 against the greenback. The pair closed Friday`s North American session at 1.0235.

Loonie Stable Versus Dollar After Canadian Housing Starts Fall Much Less Than Expected [USD/CAD]
4/8/2008 9:34:11 AM The loonie was steady to the dollar Tuesday morning after the release of data showing a smaller than expected decline in Canadian housing starts. The loonie was at 1.0130 at 9:30 am ET, little changed from the previous session.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of Canadian housing starts was 254,700 units in March, slightly down from 255,600 units in February, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The mere 0.4 percent decline shattered expectations of a 13 percent drop in housing starts.