Home Daily Commentaries The Loonie is mixed in the forex market, beating the Pound, but falling against the Greenback due to weak wholesale numbers.

The Loonie is mixed in the forex market, beating the Pound, but falling against the Greenback due to weak wholesale numbers.

Daily Currency Update

CAD - Canadian DollarAccording to the May ADP Canada National Employment Report, employment in Canada increased by 208,400 jobs from April to May. This report, which is derived from actual ADP payroll data, measures the change in total nonfarm payroll employment each month. At the same time, according to Statistics Canada, amid the pandemic situation, wholesale sales plummeted an unprecedented 21.6% to $49.8 billion in April, the lowest level since July 2013. All seven subsectors recorded lower sales for the first time since November 2008.In the crude oil market, one of the most important commodities for the Canadian economy, there were some signs of tighter supply, although concerns remain over a resurgence in coronavirus cases in China and the US. Global crude oil demand is back to about 90% of its pre-coronavirus level according to Trafigura, a top commodity trading house.

Key Movers

Localized outbreaks of Covid-19 in China and the US serve as a reminder that the risks from the virus are far from going away. This has helped the US dollar to increase as a safe haven versus other major currencies this morning. The US dollar has increased 0.24%, 1.02%, 0.2% and 0.56% versus the Euro, Pound, Loonie, and Aussie dollar respectively. Furthermore, emerging market currencies slid as concern about a second wave of the pandemic outweighed optimism resulting from stimulus measures. The Mexican peso and South African Rand have fallen 1.51% and 1.61% respectively versus the Greenback this morning.After three months of emergency stimulus by the Bank of England (BoE), the situation in the British financial markets has improved. The combination of the £200 billion quantitative easing package and the commercial paper scheme has helped the market return to something close to normality. Earlier today, the BoE and the Monetary Policy Committee voted 9-0 to keep rates on hold at 0.1%. The decision to lift the asset purchase target by 100 billion pounds to 745 billion pounds was backed by eight members, as expected. However, the BoE also signaled plans to slow the pace of asset purchases, completing the latest round by the end of 2020. This suggests that the BoE will remain cautious until it has a better idea of the shape of the recovery later this year. The Pound falls 1.15% versus the US dollar today, trading at 1.2410 at the time of this writing.

Expected Ranges

  • USD/CAD: 1.3501 - 1.3686 ▲
  • EUR/CAD: 1.5177 - 1.5272 ▼
  • GBP/CAD: 1.6835 - 1.6966 ▼
  • AUD/CAD: 0.9271 - 0.9338 ▼
  • NZD/CAD: 0.8712 - 0.8755 ▼