BLBG: Canadian Currency Trades at Almost Highest Level This Month
By Chris Fournier
Feb. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s dollar traded at almost the highest level in February before a government report expected to show wholesale sales rose in December for a fourth month.
The Canadian dollar, nicknamed the loonie, has appreciated 0.9 percent this week as commodities rebounded and concern eased that Greece may need a bailout.
The Canadian currency was little changed at C$1.0418 per U.S. dollar at 8 a.m. in Toronto, compared with C$1.0431 yesterday, when it reached C$1.0410, the strongest level since Jan. 20. One Canadian dollar buys 95.99 U.S. cents.
Wholesale sales rose 0.8 percent in December after a gain of 2.5 percent in the previous month, according to the median forecast of 16 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The report from Statistics Canada is due at 8:30 a.m.
The Federal Reserve will publish minutes from its Jan. 26- 27 meeting today.
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Montreal at cfournier3@bloomberg.net