The Canadian dollar CADUSD The Canadian dollar was little changed against the greenback on Wednesday, steadying near a 20-month low it touched the day before, as oil prices fell and investors digested minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting.
The loonie was trading nearly unchanged at 1.3035 to the greenback, or 76.72 U.S. cents, after touching on Tuesday its weakest level since November 2020 at 1.3083. It traded on Wednesday in a range of 1.3013 to 1.3078.
The Canadian dollar was the only G10 currency not to lose ground against the U.S. dollar, with the greenback climbing to fresh 20-year highs against a basket of major currencies as concern about the euro zone’s economic prospects pressured the euro.
The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, extended Tuesday’s heavy losses as investors grew more worried energy demand would take a hit in a potential global recession. U.S. crude futures settled nearly 1% lower at $98.53 a barrel.
A deteriorating inflation situation and concern about lost faith in the Fed’s power to make it better prompted U.S. central bank officials to rally around an outsized interest rate increase, minutes of the June 14-15 policy meeting showed.
The Bank of Canada has also been tightening aggressively. The central bank is set to raise its overnight rate by a hefty 75 basis points next week and by another 50 in September, front-loading a campaign to take monetary policy to where it will restrain the economy, a Reuters poll showed.
Canadian government spending is leaving the BoC to work alone to rein in the highest inflation rate in nearly four decades, economists say.
Canadian government bond yields were higher across the curve, tracking the move in U.S. Treasuries. The 10-year rose 10 basis points to 3.177% after earlier touching its lowest since June 3 at 3.026%.
Be smart with your money. Get the latest investing insights delivered right to your inbox three times a week, with the Globe Investor newsletter. Sign up today.