By Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, April 3 The Canadian dollar was trading at a firmer level compared to its US counterpart at 8:57 CDT Wednesday, with positive Chinese economic data behind much of the strength, analysts said.
At 8:57 CDT Wednesday, the Canadian dollar was at US$0.9872 or US$=C$1.0130, which compares with Tuesday’s North American close of US$0.9853 or US$=C$1.0149.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, China’s non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index increased to 55.6 in March, from 54.5 in February.
However, weakness in commodity prices, including crude oil, gold and copper, spilled over to weigh on the loonie, limiting its upside potential.
There was no significant Canadian economic data to report on Wednesday. Traders were looking ahead to Friday’s employment data from Statistics Canada.
The TSX was up 6.54 points, or 0.05%, at 8:57 CDT Wednesday morning to sit at 12,688.64.
