BS: Canada’s Dollar Declines Versus Greenback, Climbs Against Euro
Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s dollar fell versus its U.S. counterpart as risk aversion prompted by the debt crisis in Europe drove demand for currencies regarded as havens such as the greenback, yen and Swiss franc.
The loonie, as the Canadian currency is also known, rose to the highest level since September against the euro and was the second-best performer this month among the greenback’s most- traded counterparts on speculation the North American economy will recover faster than Europe’s.
“The Canadian dollar will continue to outperform on the crosses in line with U.S. dollar strength,” Sacha Tihanyi, a currency strategist in Toronto at Bank of Nova Scotia’s Scotia Capital unit, wrote via e-mail. European debt concern “is driving things,” though speculation China may tighten monetary policy to cool its economy is weighing on that country’s equities, according to Tihanyi.
The Canadian currency depreciated 0.5 percent to C$1.0235 per U.S. dollar at 8:16 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.0181 yesterday. One Canadian dollar buys 97.70 U.S. cents. The loonie gained 0.5 percent to C$1.3297 against the euro after rallying to C$1.3260, the strongest level since Sept. 14. Crosses refer to currency pairs not involving the U.S. dollar.
The loonie was headed for 0.3 percent drop against the greenback in November. The best performer among major currencies tracked by Bloomberg, the Taiwan dollar, has gained 0.5 percent.
Canada’s gross domestic product expanded 1.5 percent in the three months through September, according to the median forecast of 26 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The report from Statistics Canada is due at 8:30 a.m. Ottawa time.
--Editors: Dennis Fitzgerald, Paul Cox
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Montreal at cfournier3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net