USDCAD spot rate: 1.3444 - 1.3449 (as at 8:18am PST)
Ranges: | Asia: | 1.3450 | to | 1.3480 |
Europe: | 1.3433 | to | 1.3469 | |
North America: | 1.3433 | to | 1.3449 |
Technical Support / Resistance:
S2 | S1 | R1 | R2 |
1.3380 | 1.3425 | 1.3485 | 1.3550 |
Key Economic Data Releases:
- U.S. CPI: 0.1% (exp 0.1% / prev 0.6%)
- U.S. retail sales: 0.1% (exp 0.1% / prev 0.6%)
- U.S. Fed interest rate decision & economic projections: 11am
- Yellen speech: 11:30am
Key Event Calendar:
Date | Canada | U.S.A. |
Mar. 16 Mar. 17 | Manufacturing sales | Building permits, housing starts, Philly Fed mfg. Industrial production, consumer sentiment index |
U.S. stocks edged higher as crude rebounded from a November low, while Treasuries advanced and the USD slipped before the Federal Reserve's anticipated rate increase at 11am, followed by Yellen's press conference at 11:30am. If market and economist expectations are correct, the central bank will raise interest rates 25 basis points. Investors will watch the post-decision press conference and forecasts from the bank closely to try to gauge the pace of future tightening. Volatility has returned to the crude market, with oil seeing intra-day moves of more than 2% in 4 of the last 6 session. Yesterday's news that Saudi Arabia has raised production drove the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate for April delivery close to $47, with the price rebounding later in the session after a report showed US stockpiles dropping. For U.S. shale producers, these fluctuations are less of a concern than might be expected as many of them have successfully hedged prices for most of the rest of the decade. Currently, the TSX is up 0.49% and the DOW is up 0.17%. EURCAD is down 0.09% trading between 1.4271 and 1.4320. GBPCAD is up 0.13% trading between 1.6372 and 1.6495. JPYCAD is down 0.26% trading between 0.01171 and 0.01175. Gold is up 0.23% trading between $1,197 and $1,205USD/oz., silver is up 0.07% trading between $16.83 and $16.97USD/oz., while oil is up 0.41% trading between $48.19 and $48.86.