By Commodity News Service Canada
WINNIPEG, July 21 (CNS Canada) The Canadian dollar strengthened slightly against its US counterpart Thursday morning, supported by favourable wholesale trade reports.
May wholesale trade rose 1.8 per cent from April to a seasonally adjusted C$55.86 billion, according to Statistics Canada. Economists expected smaller gains of 0.2 per cent, according to reports.
Canadian claims for jobless benefits also jumped 9.7 per cent in May on a month-over-month basis to 264,240, according to Statistics Canada, limiting gains. This has been the largest increase since the 2008-09 financial crisis.
Wildfires in Alberta drove the advance, as residents of Fort McMurray and Alberta oilsands were forced to evacuate. Claims for unemployment insurance in the province alone soared almost 70 per cent in May, the largest monthly gain in any province in almost 10 years.
At 8:56 CDT Thursday, the Canadian dollar was at US$0.7665 or US$=C$1.3046, which compares with Wednesday’s North American close of US$0.7660 or US$1=C$1.3055.
The TSX was up 33.55 points, or 0.23 per cent, at 8:56 CDT Thursday morning to sit at 14,567.12.
