WINNIPEG – The Canadian dollar sunk on Wednesday, after Statistics Canada revealed that Canada’s trade surplus narrowed to C$1 billion in March and Ontario announced a new stay-at-home order to combat a third wave of COVID-19.

The loonie was at US$0.7926 or US$1=C$1.2617 on Wednesday, down from Tuesday’s close at US$0.7962 or US$1=C$1.2559. On the United States Dollar Index, the greenback slightly increased by 0.07 points to 92.41.

Benchmark crude oil prices continued to gain from Tuesday’s rises. Brent crude oil increased by US$0.39 per barrel to US$63.13. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil jumped by US$0.36 to US$59.69/barrel. Western Canadian Select (WCS) crude oil moved up US$0.18 to US$49.48/barrel.

The TSX Composite Index closed on a record-high for the third straight day, rising by 24.93 points to 19.129.07.

After reaching a two-week high yesterday, gold dropped by US$6.41 to US$1,736.86 per ounce.

Canada’s agricultural sector fared as follows:

Buhler Industries unchanged at $ 3.45
Linamar Corp. dn $ 0.55 at $ 74.06
Maple Leaf Foods dn $ 0.89 at $ 27.37
Nutrien Ltd. up $ 0.02 at $ 70.14
Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc. up $ 1.02 at $ 77.46
Farmer’s Edge Inc. dn $ 0.26 at $ 17.62

(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)