By Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, Feb. 14 – The Canadian dollar was trading at a fractionally firmer level compared to its US counterpart at midday Thursday, underpinned by strong US jobless claims data.
According to the US government, jobless claims in the country dropped by 27,000 to 341,000 claims during the week ended February 9, beating expectations of 360,000 claims.
At 11:40 CST Thursday, the Canadian dollar was trading at US$0.9988, or US$1=C$1.0012, which compares with Wednesday’s North American close of US$0.9982, or US$=C$1.0018.
The upswing in crude oil values also helped to underpin the Canadian currency.
However, disappointing economic growth in the euro zone limited the loonie’s upside potential. Eurostat reported on Thursday that the euro zone’s economy contracted by 0.6% in the fourth quarter of 2012, falling below expectations of a 0.4% decline.
The Toronto Stock Exchange was down 56.27 points, or 0.44%, at 11:40 CST Thursday, to sit at 12,719.01.
