USD/CAD stuck in consolidation channel below 1.3450, eyes on Fed speak
- WTI trades near the $63 handle on Monday.
- US Dollar Index moves sideways around 98 handle.
- Coming up: Speeches by FOMC Chairman Vice Chair Clarida.
The USD/CAD pair started the week in a calm manner near the 1.3450 mark and has been having a difficult time setting its next short-term direction since then. As of writing, the pair was trading at 1.3437, losing 0.17% on a daily basis.
On Friday, reports of the U.S. and Canada moving closer to a deal that would remove the steel and aluminium tariffs provided a boost to the CAD and forced the pair to return to mid-1.34s after following the intra-day rally that lifted the pair to 1.3515. Earlier today, “Starting Monday, our great Farmers can begin doing business again with Mexico and Canada. They have both taken the tariff penalties off of your great agricultural product," President Trump tweeted out.
Meanwhile, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate is clinging to small daily gains near $63 while waiting for fresh developments on the conflict in the Middle East and failing to provide a directional clue to the commodity-related loonie.
On the other hand, the US Dollar Index, which closed the previous week near the 98 mark, is moving sideways as investors are refraining from making large bets ahead of FOMC Chairman Powell and Vice Chair Clarida's speeches later in the day. The only data release from the U.S. today will be the Chicago Fed's National Activity Index.
Key technical levels to watch for
Author
Eren Sengezer
FXStreet
As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.
