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The Canadian dollar CADUSD strengthened to its highest level in eight weeks against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday, as the greenback broadly declined and domestic data showed a surprise increase for wholesale trade in September. The U.S. dollar fell against a basket of major currencies and U.S. stock index futures rallied as data showed that U.S. producer prices increased less than expected in October, providing further evidence that inflation was starting to subside. Canadian wholesale trade increased by 0.1 per cent in September from August, beating expectations for a 0.2 per cent decline, helped by higher sales of pharmaceutical products, data from Statistics Canada showed. Separate data showed that manufacturing sales were unchanged in September from August, an outcome that was also stronger than expected. Canada’s inflation data for October is awaited by investors on Wednesday for clues as to whether the Bank of Canada would raise interest rates by 25 or 50 basis points at its ...

The Canadian dollar CADUSD weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, pulling back from an eight-week high, as oil prices fell and investors weighed domestic inflation data that could leave the door open to a smaller rate Bank of Canada rate hike. Canada’s annual inflation rate held steady at 6.9 per cent in October, matching analyst forecasts, while core inflation measures were mixed, Statistics Canada data showed. Money markets have fully priced in a 25 basis point interest rate hike by the BoC at its next policy decision on Dec. 7 and see a 35 per cent chance of a larger hike of 50 basis points, up from about 30 per cent before the data. The central bank hiked by 50 basis points last month, lifting its policy rate to a 14-year high of 3.75 per cent. The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, fell as geopolitical tensions following an attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman were offset by concerns over rising COVID-19 cases in China. U.S. crude prices fell 2 pe...

European Central Bank chief economist Philip Lane speaks during a Reuters Newsmaker event in New York, on Sept. 27, 2019. GARY HE/Reuters The European Central Bank will raise interest rates again in December and next year to fight inflation but those increases may well be smaller than the most recent ones, the bank’s chief economist Philip Lane said in an interview published on Monday. With the inflation rate in double digits, the ECB has raised interest rates by 200 basis points in just three months from record low levels, and is set to mop up some of the trillion euros pumped into the financial system in recent years. Lane suggested the next rate hike would be smaller than the record 75 basis-point-increases decided at the last two ECB meetings, but won’t be the last. “One platform for considering a very large hike, such as 75 basis points, is no longer there,” MNI quoted Lane as saying. “The more you’ve already done on a cumulative basis, that changes the pros and cons of any give...

The Canadian CADUSD dollar weakened to its lowest level in 11 days against its U.S. counterpart on Monday as rising COVID-19 cases in China weighed on investor sentiment and speculation that OPEC would increase output led to volatility in the price of oil. The loonie was trading 0.4% lower at 1.3440 to the greenback, or 74.40 U.S. cents, after touching its weakest intraday level since Nov. 10 at 1.3495. “It’s predominantly being driven by exogenous factors,” said Bipan Rai, North America head of FX strategy at CIBC Capital Markets. “We see the (U.S.) dollar up across the board; including against the Canadian dollar.” The safe-haven U.S. dollar advanced against a basket of major currencies, recouping some recent losses, as fresh COVID-19 curbs in China fuelled worries over the global economic outlook and made traders shun riskier currencies. The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, whipsawed as reports varied about whether Saudi Arabia and other OPEC oil producers are consider...

The Canadian dollar CADUSD rose against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday as investor risk appetite picked up and preliminary domestic data showed retail sales climbing in October, while investors awaited comments by a senior Bank of Canada policy-maker. Canadian retail sales fell by 0.5 per cent in September from August, matching estimates, weighed by lower sales at gasoline stations, data from Statistics Canada showed. However, a flash estimate showed sales rebounding by 1.5 per cent in October. Other flash estimates were also upbeat, with manufacturing sales rising 2 per cent and wholesale trade up 1.3 per cent. Global shares recovered some of the previous day’s losses, drawing comfort from less-hawkish comments on interest-rate hikes by Federal Reserve policy-makers, although concern over more COVID infections in China kept gains in check. The safe-haven U.S. dollar fell against a basket of major currencies, while the price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, rose after top expo...

The Canadian dollar CADUSD weakened on Wednesday against its U.S. counterpart and all the other G10 currencies as oil prices fell and ahead of a parliamentary appearance by Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem. The price of oil, one of Canada’s major exports, declined as the Group of Seven (G7) nations looked at a price cap on Russian oil above where the crude grade is currently trading. U.S. crude prices were down 3.1 per cent at $78.43 a barrel. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem and Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers will appear before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance at 4:30 p.m. ET (2130 GMT). On Tuesday, Rogers said that higher interest rates are starting to slow the Canadian economy, putting pressure on households with elevated debt and people who recently bought a home with a variable-rate mortgage. To reduce inflation pressures, Canada’s central bank is aiming to slow demand so that supply can catch up. But spending on affordability measures by federal...

Flags fly in front of the European Central Bank building, in Frankfurt, Germany, on July 21. WOLFGANG RATTAY/Reuters European Central Bank policy-makers feared that inflation may be getting entrenched at their last policy gathering so rates would need to rise further, the accounts of the Oct. 26-27 meeting showed on Thursday. The ECB raised rates by 75 basis points to 1.5 per cent at the meeting to fight sky high inflation, bringing its total hikes to 200 basis points since July for its fastest policy tightening on record. Policy-makers also put the reduction of the bank’s €9-trillion balance sheet on the agenda – inching closer to unwinding a decade worth of government debt purchases aimed at rekindling inflation that had been undershooting the ECB’s objective. “It was also clear that rates would need to be raised further to reach a level that would deliver on the ECB’s 2 per cent medium-term target,” the accounts of the meeting showed. The ECB added that some policy-makers even exp...

The Canadian Real Estate Association says seasonally adjusted home sales were down 3.3 per cent on a month-over-month basis in November. The association said Thursday the move lower more than erased the gain seen in October and resumed the overall trend lower for the year. CREA said about 60 per cent of all local markets saw lower sales in November, led by Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, Edmonton, the Greater Toronto Area and Montreal. Compared with a year ago, actual home sales in November were down 38.9 per cent compared with November 2021. TD Bank economist Rishi Sondhi said demand continues to decline under the weight of rising interest rates. “Weaker sales activity should push prices even lower in the near-term. However, our forecast calls for average prices to only partially retrace their pre-pandemic gain when they eventually bottom,” Sondhi wrote in a report. “An unanticipated surge in resale supply would undermine this view, but so far the rate at which new listings...

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe takes part in a news conference on Dec. 5. Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press A local coffee shop in Ottawa’s downtown core is looking forward to some more frequent foot traffic once federal workers head back to the office on a more regular basis. “I’m just personally excited to see more people around and kind of feel like we’re back into before times,” said Kyle Macleod, a manager at Manhattan’s Coffee Co. The Treasury Board’s decision to stick with hybrid work means public servants will be back to in-person work two to three days a week starting early next year, to be fully implemented by the end of March. Departments were able to make their own arrangements for a hybrid workplace model during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Treasury Board will now apply a consistent approach. The reaction from public servants has been mixed, but the return-to-office news is being greeted by the city and local business community as a boon for commerce and public transit r...

The Canadian dollar CADUSD was little changed against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday as investors kept their eye on developments overseas even as domestic data showed underlying inflation pressures picking up. The loonie was trading nearly unchanged at 1.3610 to the greenback, or 73.48 U.S. cents, after moving in a range of 1.3590 to 1.3637. “The focus here isn’t really on domestic factors for the CAD, it’s more on global forces,” said Mazen Issa, a senior FX strategist at TD Securities. Such forces include moves by China to reopen its economy as well as hawkish shifts by the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan, Issa said. On Tuesday, the BOJ tweaked its policy of yield curve control in a surprise move that triggered a surge in the yen. Canada’s annual inflation rate eased to 6.8 per cent in November as gasoline price rose more slowly, but an uptick in prices after excluding food and energy left the door open for another interest rate increase by the Bank of Canada next mo...

A floating LNG gas terminal in the harbour in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, on Nov. 15, 2022. FABIAN BIMMER/Reuters European Union energy regulators were unable to launch a planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) price assessment by a Friday deadline because they did not receive enough data from market participants. The price assessment by the EU Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) is to be the first step in the EU’s plan to launch a new European benchmark piece for LNG, which Europe is switching to, to replace Russian pipeline gas. Once established, market participants could use the new benchmark as the basis for LNG contracts, which have historically been pegged to the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) gas hub price that became highly volatile in the last year after Russia slashed pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. But ACER was not able to publish its first daily LNG price assessment as planned on Friday, because only two of nine transactions reported to the regulator we...

The Canadian dollar CADUSD strengthened against its U.S. counterpart on Tuesday as investors raised bets on a Bank of Canada interest rate hike this month following domestic data showing that underlying inflation pressures persist. Canada’s annual inflation rate eased more than expected to 6.3 per cent in December as gas prices came down but core measures remained little changed from the previous month, Statistics Canada said. Money markets see a 77 per cent chance of a quarter-point hike by the Bank of Canada on Jan. 25, up from 70 per cent before the data. The core measures of inflation “are a little bit stickier” than the headline, said Michael Greenberg, SVP and portfolio manager at Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions. The BoC is going to keep its “eye on the prize,” which is inflation moving back to a range of 1 per cent to 3 per cent with inflation expectations anchored, Greenberg added. The Canadian dollar was trading 0.2 per cent higher at 1.3380 to the greenback, or 74.7...

Canadian home prices fell in December from the previous month, extending their decline from a May peak, while prices were no longer up on a year-over-year basis, Teranet–National Bank National Composite House Price data showed on Thursday. The index, which tracks repeat sales of single-family homes in major Canadian markets, dropped 1.1 per cent on the month, led by declines in Winnipeg and the metropolitan area of Ottawa-Gatineau. From its peak in May, the index has now fallen 10 per cent, with Hamilton down 17.5 per cent and Toronto, Canada’s most populous city, falling 14.3 per cent. Prices were flat compared with December 2021, marking the first time since the 2008-09 global financial crisis that the index did not see a year-over-year increase, Daren King, an economist at National Bank of Canada said in a statement. The Teranet index tracks closings, so it typically lags realtor sales data by three to five months. https://www.tausiinsider.com/canadian-home-prices-drop-in-dec...

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe takes part in a news conference on Dec. 5. Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press A local coffee shop in Ottawa’s downtown core is looking forward to some more frequent foot traffic once federal workers head back to the office on a more regular basis. “I’m just personally excited to see more people around and kind of feel like we’re back into before times,” said Kyle Macleod, a manager at Manhattan’s Coffee Co. The Treasury Board’s decision to stick with hybrid work means public servants will be back to in-person work two to three days a week starting early next year, to be fully implemented by the end of March. Departments were able to make their own arrangements for a hybrid workplace model during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Treasury Board will now apply a consistent approach. The reaction from public servants has been mixed, but the return-to-office news is being greeted by the city and local business community as a boon for commerce and public transit r...