BLBG:Canadian Dollar Reaches Almost 1-Week High After Draghi Comments
Canada’s dollar climbed to almost a one-week high versus its U.S. counterpart after comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi about preserving the 17-nation currency sparked a rally in higher-risk assets.
The Canadian currency was headed for a 0.4 percent increase against the greenback this week as stock-index futures rose and crude oil, the nation’s largest export, rallied back above $90 a barrel. Draghi said policy makers will do whatever is needed to preserve the euro.
“The Canadian dollar is reacting to Draghi’s very strong comments,” Camilla Sutton, head of currency strategy at Bank of Nova Scotia in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. “There’s a significant short covering in euro. Other markets are following suit on reduced risk aversion.” Short covering refers to buying a security to square earlier bets that it would fall.
Canada’s currency, nicknamed the loonie, gained 0.7 percent, the most this month, to C$1.0080 cents per U.S. dollar at 8:01 a.m. in Toronto. One Canadian dollar buys 99.21 cents.
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Halifax at cfournier3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robert Burgess at bburgess@bloomberg.net
