By Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, February 7 The Canadian dollar was trading at a weaker level compared to the US dollar at 8:47 CST Thursday, as soft Canadian housing data weighed on its value, analysts said.
Statistics Canada reported that the total value of building permits issued in December fell 11.2% to C$5.7 billion, following a 14.5% decline in November.
At 8:47 CST Thursday, the Canadian dollar was at US$1.0036 or US$=C$0.9964, which compares with Wednesday’s North American close of US$1.0045 or US$=C$0.9955.
Expectations that Friday’s Canadian employment data will be weak also put downward pressure on the Canadian dollar’s value. Traders expect Statistics Canada to report that around 5,000 new jobs were created in January, which compares to 31,000 jobs in December.
However, strong crude oil prices helped to slow the decline, market watchers noted.
The TSX was down 10.82 points, or 0.08%, at 8:47 CST Thursday morning to sit at 12,750.77.
