Loonie briefly touches 80-cent US mark before retreating to previous day’s close
TORONTO – The Canadian dollar briefly touched the 80-cent US mark before retreating, signalling a remarkable rebound for the currency this year.
The loonie hit the 80-cent US level on the nose in early morning trading but then slipped back to 79.69 cents US, unchanged from Thursday’s close.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 65.02 points to 13,951.45, while the June contract for benchmark North American crude oil was trading at US$45.92, a drop of 11 cents.
Earlier, Statistics Canada reported that the economy contracted by 0.1 per cent in February, the first monthly decline since September, though that was in line with expectations.
New York was in the red, with the S&P 500 down 10.51 points to 2,065.30, the Dow Jones industrial average sliding 57.12 points to 17,773.64 and the Nasdaq composite falling 29.93 to 4,775.36.
June natural gas rose 10 cents to $2.18 per mmBtu, while June gold gained US$24.10 at US$1,290.50 per ounce and July copper was up five cents to US$2.28 a pound.
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