BLBG: Canada’s Dollar Strengthens Versus Greenback for 4th Day as Stocks Rally
Canada’s dollar advanced for a fourth straight day against its U.S. counterpart, the longest streak in seven weeks, as stocks make the best start to the year in a quarter century.
The currency is headed for a 1.5 percent gain on the week as crude oil, the nation’s largest export, rose for a third day. Canada’s inflation rate probably slowed in December, a Statistics Canada report is forecast to show tomorrow, according to median forecasts compiled by Bloomberg.
“The near-term U.S. dollar-Canada dollar trend appears to be lower still,” Shaun Osborne, chief currency strategist at Toronto-Dominion Bank’s TD Securities unit, wrote in an e-mail message. “As investors rebuild risk positions, the U.S. dollar is likely to slip back.”
Canada’s currency gained 0.3 percent to C$1.0078 per U.S. dollar at 8:05 a.m. in Toronto. It touched C$1.0074, the most since Dec. 8. One Canadian dollar buys 99.23 U.S. cents.
U.S. stocks are off to the best start in 25 years as investors speculate Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has done enough to insulate the economy from Europe’s debt crisis. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index has gained 4 percent, the most since it rose 10 percent over the first 11 days in 1987, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Halifax, Nova Scotia, at cfournier3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net
