WINNIPEG – The Canadian dollar was mostly steady on Thursday after a key interest rate decision by the Bank of Canada and welcome job data from the United States.
As of 8:38 a.m. CDT, the loonie was at US$0.7895 or US$1=C$1.2666, compared to US$0.7889 or US$1=C$1.2676 when markets closed on Wednesday. The Bank of Canada announced on Wednesday it will retain its key interest rate of 0.25 per cent and continue its bond-buying program. Earlier today, the U.S. Labor Department announced that weekly jobless claims reached an 18-month low for the week ended Sept. 4 with 310,000 claims.
Crude oil dropped on Thursday. Brent crude oil declined US$1.01 per barrel to US$71.59. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell US$1.28 to US$68.02/barrel. Western Canadian Select (WCS) slipped back US$0.60 to US$57.00/barrel.
The TSX/S&P Composite Index retreated 12.73 points at 20,729.06 on Thursday morning.
Gold increased US$7.10 per ounce to US$1,800.60.
