USD/CAD – Canadian dollar quiet as CPI remains steady

USD/CAD is trading sideways on Wednesday. In the North American session, the pair is trading at 1.3344, down 0.04% on the day. On the release front, Canadian CPI remained pegged at 0.7% in March, matching the forecast. There are no major U.S. releases on the calendar. Thursday will be busy on both sides of the border. Canada releases retail sales reports and ADP nonfarm payrolls. In the U.S., in addition to retail sales, we’ll get a look at the Philly Fed manufacturing index and unemployment claims.

The Canadian dollar hasn’t shown much movement of late. Oil prices have been moving higher, which has bolstered the loonie, as Canada is a major oil producer. However, this has been largely offset by concerns that the Bank of Canada could cut interest rates at next week’s policy meeting. Canadian economic data has been lukewarm, as the tariff war between the U.S. and China has hurt Canadian exports. On Thursday, investors will be keeping a key eye on Canadian retail sales numbers, hoping to get a better read on the BoC’s rate plans after the release of retail sales. With the U.S. releasing a host of key events, traders should be prepared for some movement from the pair during Thursday’s North American session.

Oil Rises After Weekly Stocks Report Drawdown of 1.4M

USD/CAD Fundamentals

Wednesday (April 17)

  • 8:30 Canadian CPI. Estimate 0.7%. Actual 0.7%
  • 8:30 US Trade Balance. Estimate -53.5B. Actual -49.4B
  • 10:00 US Final Wholesales Inventories. Estimate 0.4%. Actual 0.2%
  • 10:30 US Crude Oil Inventories. Estimate -1.2M. Actual -1.4
  • 12:45 US FOMC Member Bullard Speaks
  • 14:00 US Beige Book

Thursday (April 18)

  • 8:30 Canadian Retail Sales. Estimate 0.2%
  • 8:30 Canadian Core Retail Sales. Estimate 0.4%
  • 8:30 US Core Retail Sales. Estimate 0.7%
  • 8:30 US Retail Sales. Estimate 0.9%
  • 8:30 US Philly Fed Manufacturing Index. Estimate 11.2
  • 8:30 US Unemployment Claims. Estimate 207K

*All release times are DST

*Key events are in bold

USD/CAD for Wednesday, April 17, 2019

USD/CAD, April 17 at 13:15 DST

Open: 1.3350 High: 1.3373 Low: 1.3275 Close: 1.3344

USD/CAD Technical

S3 S2 S1 R1 R2 R3
1.3125 1.3200 1.3290 1.3383 1.3445 1.3552

USD/CAD ticked lower in the Asian and European sessions. The pair edged lower early in North American trade but has recovered

  • 1.3290 is providing support
  • 1.3383 is the next resistance line
  • Current range: 1.3290 to 1.3383

Further levels in both directions:

  • Below: 1.3290, 1.3200 and 1.3125
  • Above: 1.3383, 1.3445, 1.3552 and 1.3662

Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.

Kenny Fisher

Kenny Fisher

Market Analyst at OANDA
A highly experienced financial market analyst with a focus on fundamental analysis, Kenneth Fisher’s daily commentary covers a broad range of markets including forex, equities and commodities. His work has been published in several major online financial publications including Investing.com, Seeking Alpha and FXStreet. Based in Israel, Kenny has been a MarketPulse contributor since 2012.