By Commodity News Service Canada
Winnipeg, January 5 – The Canadian dollar was higher Monday morning, in the wake of a new study which predicted that lower oil prices could benefit the Canadian economy.
At 8:50 CST Monday morning, the loonie was up 0.0003 of a cent to US$0.8494 or US$1 = C$1.1177. The Canadian dollar strengthened despite a sharp drop in crude oil prices.
Investors are keenly watching the political situation in Greece. A party that favours moving away from the austerity measures imposed by the previous government is leading in the polls. Analysts warn it could lead to Greece exiting the European Union in the future.
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The US is scheduled to release a report on auto sales this week. As well, data on November factory orders, the purchasing managers’ index and the minutes of last months’ meeting of the Federal Reserve are also expected.
On the commodity markets the February crude contract in New York dropped $2.05 to US$50.64 a barrel. March copper fell six cents to US$2.76 a pound while the February gold contract rose 0.70 to US$1,186.90 an ounce.
At 8:50 CST Monday morning, the TSX was down 111.20 points to 14,642.45.
