Canadian dollar and business outlook

By MarketsFarm

WINNIPEG, July 2 (MarketsFarm) The Canadian dollar was slightly down after the Canadian long weekend, following muted crude oil prices and reports of a downturn in global manufacturing.

At 9:00 CDT, the Canadian dollar was at US$0.7619 or C$1.3125, which compares with Thursday’s North American close of US$0.7641 or C$1.3087.

A recent report showed Canadian manufacturing activity contracted for a third consecutive month in June. The IHS Markit Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ index (PMI), a measure of manufacturing business conditions, edged up to a seasonally adjusted 49.2 last month from 49.1 in May. A reading below 50 shows contraction in the sector. The index fell below 50 in April, for the first time since February 2016. Similarly disappointing manufacturing reports have recently come out of the United States, China, and Europe.

Oil prices dropped 1.2 per cent on Tuesday morning, following an announcement that OPEC and its allies will continue to cut oil supplies for the next nine months. Brent Crude oil futures hovered around US$64 on Tuesday morning, down 63 cents from the previous day. West Texas Intermediate prices were in the US$58 range, down 63 cents.

The TSX gained at 9:00 CDT, up 21.30 points at 16,403.50. The S&P 500 Index was down 2.89 points to hit 2,961.61. Similarly, the Dow Jones lost 50.70 points at 26,669.66. The NASDAQ also lost slightly, down 9.56 to hit 8,081.14.

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