The Canadian dollar slipped briefly below parity with its U.S. counterpart before heading back above the greenback before markets opened Monday morning.
The loonie was ahead 0.21 of a cent to 100.19 cents (U.S.) after the earlier decline.
It was down as low as 99.87 cents (U.S.), its first time below parity since Jan. 31.
Investors are nervous about Europe's debt problems and have sought safety in the U.S. dollar, which accounts for much of the shift.
With a calendar light on Canadian economic data, the loonie is trading based on overall global investor sentiment.
Investors appear to be more sensitive to risk as they contemplate whether Greece will have to default on its loans, dragging the euro zone down with it.
Sliding commodity prices also put pressure on the loonie, with gold down $18.10 to $1,841.40 (U.S.) per ounce, copper prices off 8 cents to $3.92 (U.S.) per pound. Oil lost 96 cents to $86.28 (U.S.).
