BLBG:Canadian Dollar Advances Against Greenback, Yen And Euro
(RTTNews) - The Canadian dollar strengthened against its US, Japanese and European counterparts in Asian trading on Friday as stronger U.S. economic data eased worries over the prospects for global economic growth.
A report from the Labor Department showed Thursday that initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell to a three-year low in the week ended December 10. Jobless claims fell to 366,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 385,000, while economists had expected claims to edge up 390,000. With the drop, jobless claims fell to their lowest level since May of 2008.
Separate reports from the New York Federal Reserve and the Philadelphia Federal Reserve also showed bigger than expected improvements in regional manufacturing activity in December.
The Canadian dollar rose to 3-day highs of 75.57 against the yen and 1.0308 against the greenback, compared to yesterday's close of 75.26 and 1.0350, respectively. If the loonie gains further, it may likely target 75.8 against the yen and 1.025 against the greenback.
Against the euro, the Canadian dollar climbed to a 3-month high of 1.3435. On the upside, 1.340 is seen as the next target level for the Canadian dollar. At yesterday's close, the euro-loonie pair was quoted at 1.3472.
French business confidence index for December and the Eurozone trade data for October are due in the upcoming hours.
The U.S. CPI for November is scheduled for release in the New York morning session.
