Forex Pros - The U.S. dollar slipped lower against its Canadian counterpart on Thursday, as clashes in Bahrain saw crude oil prices rise, while uncertainty over Japan's nuclear crisis and a dismal U.S. government report on housing weighed on sentiment.
USD/CAD hit 0.9808 during European afternoon trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.9838, slipping 0.19%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.9733, Tuesday's low and resistance at 0.9900, the high of February 24.
Japanese authorities were attempting to contain the fallout from the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, in the wake of last week's earthquake and tsunami.
Meanwhile, tensions in the Middle East were also in focus after police in Bahrain killed three protesters and wounded dozens more in the capital's Pearl Square. The violence sent oil prices higher and lent support to the commodity-linked Canadian dollar.
Also Wednesday, the U.S. Commerce Department said housing starts posted their biggest decline in 27 years in February, while building permits dropped to their lowest level on record.
The loonie was fractionally higher against the yen, with CAD/JPY easing up 0.02% to hit 81.87.
Earlier in the day, the Canadian dollar was almost unchanged after official data showed that Canada's monthly manufacturing sales topped expectations in January, rising at the fastest pace since July 2009.
Meanwhile, new orders rose at the fastest rate since June 2009, also to the highest level since October 2008, led by the aerospace, motor vehicle and fabricated metal product industries.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.