USD/CAD manages to hold above 1.2800 handle

   •  A goodish pickup in the US bond yields offset subdued USD demand.
   •  Weaker oil prices did little to support the commodity-linked Loonie.

The USD/CAD pair consolidated Friday's slump to 1-1/2 week lows and was seen oscillating in a range just above the 1.2800 handle. 

The US Dollar continues to be weighed down by the latest US monthly jobs report, showing an addition of 313K new jobs but was largely offset by disappointing average hourly earnings. 

The negative factor, to some extent, was negated by a goodish pickup in the US Treasury bond yields. This coupled with a subdued action around crude oil prices did little to lend any support to the commodity-linked currency - Loonie and helped the pair to find some support near the 1.2800 handle.

Currently hovering around the 1.2810-15 region, the pair lacked any firm directional bias and now seemed to await for some fresh catalyst. In absence of any major market-moving economic data, the USD/oil price dynamics could play an important role in determining the pair's momentum on the first trading day of the week. 

Moving ahead, this week's important US macro releases, including the latest consumer inflation figures and monthly retail sales data, would now be looked upon for some fresh meaningful impetus.

Technical levels to watch

Recovery attempts beyond 1.2825 level might now confront some fresh supply near the 1.2860 horizontal level, above which the pair is likely to move back towards reclaiming the 1.2900 handle. 

On the flip side, sustained weakness below the 1.2800 round figure mark now seems to pave the way for an extension of the pair's corrective slide towards 1.2760 horizontal support en-route the 1.2700 handle.