USD/CAD – Canadian Dollar Rides Strong Employment Numbers

USD/CAD is showing limited movement on Monday, with the pair trading in the low-1.13 range. On the release front, it’s a quiet start to the week. Canadian Housing Starts slipped to 184 thousand last month, well off expectations. There are no releases out of the US on Monday.

The Canadian dollar has had its fair share of trouble lately, but the struggling currency gained about 100 points on Friday, as Canadian employment data sparkled. Employment Change posted a solid gain of 43.1 thousand, crushing the estimate of -3.9 thousand. The unemployment rate surprised with a sharp drop, improving from 6.8% to 6.5%. This is the lowest rate we’ve seen since December 2008.

Employment numbers were not as good south of the border, as US Nonfarm Payrolls disappointed on Friday. The key employment indicator slipped to 214 thousand, well short of the estimate of 235 thousand. On a brighter note, the unemployment rate slipped to 5.8%, its lowest level in six years. On Thursday, Unemployment Claims fell to 278 thousand. This was better than the estimate of 285 thousand and marked a three-week low.

USD/CAD for Monday, November 10, 2014

USD/CAD November 10 at 15:40 GMT

USD/CAD 1.1319 H: 1.1336 L: 1.1300

USD/CAD Technical

• USD/CAD was uneventful in the Asian and European sessions.
• 1.1278 is providing weak support. 1.1124 is stronger.
• 1.1414 is a strong resistance line.
• Current range: 1.1278 to 1.1414

Further levels in both directions:

• Below: 1.1278, 1.1124, 1.1004 and 1.0961
• Above: 1.1414, 1.1493, 1.1669, 1.1723 and 1.1875

OANDA’s Open Positions Ratio

USD/CAD ratio is pointing to gains in long positions on Monday as strong gains by the Canadian dollar on Friday resulted in the covering of short positions. The ratio is currently split between long and short positions, indicating a lack of trader bias regarding what direction the pair will take.

USD/CAD Fundamentals

• 13:15 Canadian Housing Starts. Estimate 200K. Actual 184K.

* Key releases are in highlighted bold.

*All release times are GMT

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