BLBG: Canadian Dollar Declines As Economy Concern Spurs Risk Aversion
Canada’s dollar depreciated as safety demand drove its U.S. counterpart and the yen higher after Australian employers unexpectedly cut payrolls, intensifying concern about the state of the global economy.
The currency touched the lowest level this month against the greenback as Canada’s new home price index rose 0.3 percent in May, its 14th straight gain, the government statistics agency said. The loonie, as Canada’s dollar is known, rose against the majority of its most-traded peers.
“What we’re struggling with is Australian employment,” Greg Anderson, a currency strategist at Citigroup Inc. in New York, said in a telephone interview. “That was a huge disappointment. And we’re still very worried about China. That’s what’s driven risk sentiment. On a relative basis, the Canadian dollar looks good here.”
Canada’s currency fell 0.3 percent to C$1.0227 per U.S. dollar at 8:31 a.m. in Toronto, after depreciating to C$1.0244, the lowest level since June 29. One Canadian dollar buys 97.77 U.S. cents.
Australia’s dollar dropped for the fourth time in five days after the statistics bureau said in Sydney said the number of people employed in the country fell by 27,000, almost erasing a revised 27,800 job gain in May. The jobless rate increased for a second month, to 5.2 percent from 5.1 percent.
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Fournier in Halifax at cfournier3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net
