Home Daily Commentaries Canadian dollar gains traction

Canadian dollar gains traction

Daily Currency Update

CAD - Canadian DollarThe Canadian dollar reached a five-week high against the US dollar on Monday and the momentum continued at the opening of trading on Tuesday. At the time of writing, it traded at 1.344. Not since June 9 has USD/CAD reached 1.338 and it has been trading within a limited range since then.Several factors have contributed to the swing. StatsCan released May’s month-over-month retail sales. Retail sales were up 18.9% compared to April, and were led by motor vehicles and auto parts. However, retail sales didn’t meet expectations. In addition, stock markets were up on optimistic news surrounding COVID-19 vaccine updates. As equity markets rise, so does the appetite for the Canadian dollar.

Key Movers

The British pound staged a strong relief rally against the Euro, U.S. Dollar and other major currencies on Monday reversing some of last week’s sell-off. GBP/EUR rallied by 0.75% to push above the 1.10 handle. GBP/USD pushed higher by 0.5% to break through 1.26 and then trade towards 1.27. There were no obvious signs as to why Sterling rallied yesterday, more than likely it was repositioning in the markets before another round of Brexit negotiations this week.The Australian dollar crept back above 0.70 US cents through trade on Monday, buoyed by an uptick in risk appetite. Investors chased risk assets higher following reports further COVID-19 vaccine trials showed promising results. AstraZeneca, in partnership with Oxford University, released results of trials that covered over 1,000 patients all of whom generated antibodies to the virus as well as T-cells which seek out and kill already infected cells. With no serious side-effects reported researchers will move to the next stage of clinical trials, upsizing the number of participants in the hope of having a finished product ready for delivery to key healthcare workers and those most vulnerable to the disease by years end. Having pushed back through 0.70 the AUD touched intraday highs at 0.7020 before leveling out and trading sideways into this morning’s open.

Expected Ranges

  • USD/CAD: 1.344 - 1.353 ▲
  • CAD/AUD: 1.045 - 1.0549 ▼
  • GBP/CAD: 1.706 - 1.715 ▼
  • EUR/CAD: 1.538 - 1.549 ▲