BLBG: Canada’s Dollar Weakens Before Report as Stock Futures Decline
Canada’s currency depreciated as the central bank prepared to issue a report tomorrow that may pave the way for so-called quantitative easing and U.S. stock- index futures dropped.
“There’s less reason to trade the Canadian dollar at the moment, so there’s no reason to buy it,” said David Watt, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets Inc., a unit of Canada’s biggest bank by assets. “Stock markets are weak again on general risk aversion.”
The Canadian dollar, known as the loonie, fell 0.7 percent to C$1.2439 per U.S. dollar at 8:16 a.m. in Toronto, from C$1.2357 yesterday. One Canadian dollar buys 80.39 U.S. cents.
The loonie will weaken to C$1.25 against the U.S. dollar this quarter before rebounding to C$1.20 by the end of the first quarter next year, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 35 analysts and economists.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped 0.6 percent.
Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney, after cutting borrowing costs yesterday to 0.25 percent, the lowest on record, will give guidelines tomorrow on the bank’s monetary policy, which may include printing money to buy debt assets and spur lending.
“I don’t think the tone for the Canadian dollar will be great; if anything we’ll get a weaker tone ahead of the Monetary Policy Report tomorrow,” Watt said. “It’s a potentially market-moving event.”