By Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, December 23 – The Canadian dollar rose higher relative to its US counterpart Wednesday, following advances in oil and ignoring weak economic data. The loonie initially felt pressure after GDP product and retail sales data came in lower than expected, but soon recovered.
The Canadian dollar closed at US$0.7217 or US$1 = C$1.3857.
The TSX posted solid gains Wednesday as crude oil pushed the energy sector higher. Toronto’s oil and gas group rose 5.8%.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index advanced 202.05 points, or 1.54%, to 13,284.91.
Canada’s agricultural sector performed as follows:
AGT Food and Ingredients—–up $ 1.89 at $ 34.19
Agrium Incorporated———-up $ 2.30 at $128.96
Buhler Industries————– $ 0.00 at $ 5.44
Maple Leaf Foods————-up $ 0.21 at $ 23.45
Potash Corp. of Sask———up $ 0.87 at $ 25.42
(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)
