Canadian dollar hits 4-week high
February 19, 2021SharePrint
The Canadian dollar has posted slight gains on Friday. Currently, USD/CAD is trading at 1.2646, down 0.24% on the day.
Canadian dollar closes in on 1.26 line
The Canadian dollar has been creeping higher since mid-week. Earlier in the day, USD/CAD dropped to a low of 1.2609, its lowest level in four weeks. The US dollar eased overnight, and the dollar index has dropped on Friday 0.38%, to 90.24. There is support at 90.00, and a daily close below this level would signal a downtrend for the US currency.
Investors brace for soft retail sales
Canada releases retail sales reports for December later in the day (13:30 GMT). The release follows US retail sales earlier this week, but the numbers are expected to be much worse. US retail sales sizzled in January, with a gain of 5.3%, good enough for a seven-month high. The street consensus call for declines of -2.5% for headline retail sales and -2.4% for core retail sales, respectively. This would point to a sharp contraction in consumer spending, and if the forecasts prove accurate, we can expect the Canadian dollar to fall in the North American session.