By Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, January 3 – The Canadian dollar was trading flat compared to its US counterpart at midday Thursday, amid mixed commodity prices, analysts said. Crude oil was higher, while gold and copper values fell.
At 11:49 CST Thursday, the Canadian dollar was trading at US$1.0147, or US$1=C$0.9855, which compares with Wednesday’s North American close of US$1.0150, or US$=C$0.9852.
Strong US employment data helped to underpin the Canadian currency. US payroll processor Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) reported private-sector hiring increased more than expected in December.
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However, fading optimism surrounding budget issues in the US limited the Canadian unit’s upside potential, market watchers said.
Though the fiscal cliff was essentially averted, US lawmakers still have many budget problems to resolve, including making decisions about spending cuts and debt limits.
There was no significant Canadian economic data to report on Thursday. Traders were looking ahead to Friday, when Statistics Canada will release employment data and industrial product and raw materials price indexes.
The Toronto Stock Exchange was down 19.90 points, or 0.16%, at 11:49 CST Thursday, to sit at 12,520.87.
