BLBG: Canada’s Dollar Rises First Time in Three Days as Stocks Gain
By Chris Fournier
Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Canada’s currency rose for the first time in three days as U.S. stocks reversed declines and the greenback fell against most major counterparts on concern a Federal Reserve report may show the economy is slowing.
The Canadian dollar traded near a three-month high as copper and natural gas advanced. Canada relies on raw materials for about half its export revenue. The U.S. dollar fell against 11 of its 16 most-traded counterparts tracked by Bloomberg.
“U.S. dollar selling is so in vogue today that the Canadian dollar is provided a boost,” said Sacha Tihanyi, a foreign-exchange strategist in Toronto at Bank of Nova Scotia. “Equities have recovered some lost ground.”
The Canadian currency appreciated 0.5 percent to C$1.0341 per U.S. dollar at 11:38 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.0388 yesterday. It touched C$1.0253 on Jan. 11, the strongest level since Oct. 15. One Canadian dollar buys 96.70 U.S. cents.
Canada’s dollar, nicknamed the loonie, has climbed 2.5 percent over the past month for the second-best performance among the most-traded currencies, after the South Korean won.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 0.3 percent after earlier falling as much as 0.3 percent.
The Federal Reserve’s Beige Book economic report is due today at 2 p.m.
“If people are not sure what to do, they sell the U.S. dollar,” said John Curran, a Toronto-based senior vice president at CanadianForex Ltd., an online foreign-exchange dealer. “When they’re a little bit scared, they go back to the risk trade,” he said, referring to a trend of buying the greenback on bad economic news.
Curran recommends purchasing the U.S. dollar against the Canadian, saying “the overall trade for the next three months is going to be to buy the U.S. dollar.”
The loonie pared gains as crude oil for February delivery extended a loss, falling as much as 3 percent to $78.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude is Canada’s biggest export.