Canada’s dollar dropped against the greenback after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said yesterday the recovery of the nation’s biggest trading partner is “frustratingly” slow. “Because the Canadian economy is so contingent on the U.S. economy, it’s been painted with a broad brush,” said Boris Schlossberg, director of research at the online currency trader GFT Forex in New York. “U.S. economic data are so weak.” The loonie, as the currency is also known for the image of the aquatic bird on the C$1 coin, pared its losses as crude oil rose. OPEC Secretary General Abdalla el-Badri said ministers were unable to reach a decision on production quotas at their meeting in Vienna. The Canadian currency depreciated 0.3 percent to 97.75 versus the greenback at 9:34 a.m. in Toronto, from 97.45 yesterday. The loonie earlier slid as much as 0.8 percent. One Canadian dollar buys $1.0230. Bernanke said in an Atlanta speech yesterday that the pace of U.S. recovery warrants sustained monetary stimulus while predicting that growth will gain speed in the second half of the year. Futures on crude oil, Canada’s biggest export, increased 1.9 percent to $100.92 a barrel in New York after falling as much as 1.1 percent. Canadian housing starts advanced to 183,600 in May from 178,700 in the previous month, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. reported today. The median forecast of 21 economists in a Bloomberg News survey was for a gain to 182,000 from a previously reported 179,000. To contact the reporter on this story: Cecile Vannucci in New York at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net. To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net

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