A Canadian dollar coin, commonly known as the "Loonie", is pictured in this illustration picture taken in Toronto in this January 23, 2015, file photo. The Canadian dollar pared earlier session losses against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday, strengthening after data showed January growth was better than feared. REUTERS/Mark Blinch/FilesMARK BLINCH/Reuters
The Canadian dollar closed at 75.67 cents (U.S.) up a slight 0.02 of a U.S. cent from Thursday's close of 75.65 cents (U.S.).
The loonie was up modestly despite oil trading higher on Friday. Oil surged in trading adding to its 10-per-cent gains on Thursday. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude closed at $45.22 (U.S.) up another 6 per cent or $2.66 (U.S.) from Thursday's close.
Oil sent the S&P/TSX higher on Friday. But markets in New York were under pressure, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing lower to end the week.
There was no major economic news out for Canada on Friday.
South of the border, data showed U.S. consumer spending picked up in July. The Commerce Department said on Friday consumer spending increased 0.3 per cent. This is more good news for the U.S. economy as consumer spending makes up two-thirds of U.S. economic activity.
U.S. central bankers continue to meet in Jackson Hole Wyoming for a second day. On Saturday a speech is expected from the Federal Open Market committee. That speech has the potential to create volatility in the currency markets as it could signal whether the U.S. Federal Reserve is ready to raise rates in September. Speculation of a rate hike in the U.S. remains one of the biggest drags on the Canadian dollar, as higher rates there would send the loonie lower.
Next week is a busy week for economic news out of Canada. On Tuesday, Statistics Canada will release two reports on GDP, for industry and for income and expenditure. On Wednesday, we get a reading on the health of international merchandise trade for July. We end the week with a reading on employment data for August and second quarter results for labour productivity, hourly compensation and unit labour costs. All of these economic reports have the potential to create volatility for the Canadian dollar.
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