The Canadian dollar closed at 76.28 cents (U.S.) on Wednesday, down 0.31 cents (U.S) from Tuesday's close of 76.59 cents (U.S.).
Downward pressure on the loonie continues to come from falling oil prices. Oil hit a fresh six-year low on Wednesday as growing concern over a global supply glut put more downward pressure on the price of the commodity. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil contract closed at $40.80 (U.S) a barrel on Wednesday. That's down 4.2 per cent in just one day of trading - or $1.82 (U.S.) from Tuesday's close.
The U.S. Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Open Market Committee released the minutes of the committee meeting held at the end of July. In it the Fed revealed it is looking for more confidence in the inflation outlook before raising rates. But it saw conditions for a rate hike approaching soon. A rate hike in September by the U.S. Federal Reserve would likely put more downward pressure on the loonie, which is sitting near an 11-year low.
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In Canada, a big focus is now on Friday, when Statistics Canada releases both the Consumer Price Index for July and retail sales for June. Both numbers could affect the movement of the Canadian dollar.
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