Canadian dollar ticks higher

Canada’s dollar climbed to a three-week high on April 15, rising with global risk appetite and a fresh batch of stronger Canadian trade data. (kitco.com) Reuters reported the loonie traded about 0.2% stronger at roughly C$1.3760 per U.S. dollar, or about 72.67 U.S. cents, after touching its firmest intraday level in three weeks. (kitco.com) The domestic data landed the same morning. Statistics Canada said manufacturing sales rose 3.6% in February to C$71.2 billion, after a 3.1% drop in January. (statcan.gc.ca) Statistics Canada also said wholesale sales, excluding petroleum and grain categories, rose 2.0% in February to C$86.8 billion, with motor vehicles and parts up 6.1%. (statcan.gc.ca) A stronger currency makes imported goods cheaper in local terms when Canadian companies or households buy products priced in U.S. dollars. The Bank of Canada’s exchange-rate pages track those daily moves because they can feed into inflation and trade conditions. (bankofcanada.ca) That channel is only one input for policymakers. On March 18, the Bank of Canada left its policy rate unchanged at 2.25% and said war in the Middle East had increased volatility in energy prices and financial markets. (bankofcanada.ca) The Bank’s next scheduled rate decision is April 28, one of eight fixed announcement dates in 2026. That puts the loonie’s mid-April rise in front of a policy meeting that will also bring a new Monetary Policy Report. (bankofcanada.ca) For now, the move looks more like a short-term lift than a break from the past few months, when the Canadian dollar has swung with oil, geopolitics and shifts in demand for the U.S. dollar. By April 15, better factory and wholesale numbers gave the loonie one more reason to push higher. (theglobeandmail.com)