The National Bank of Canada

Surprising tone from the BoCAs expected, the Bank of Canada (BoC) announced yesterday that it would keep its overnight rate target at 1/2%. Nevertheless, the Canadian dollar reacted negatively to the...

Last week was notable for a drop in energy prices. WTI crude, Brent crude and diesel closed the week down 6.72%, 6.19% and 5.85%, respectively. Data released by the U.S. Department of Energy on...

After-affects continue to accumulate As the U.S. dollar attempted to recover from its rough ride last week, it suffered a further setback on Tuesday morning. The Institute for Supply Management...

The Canadian dollar took advantage of the Labour Day holiday on Monday to gain ground against the greenback helped by the price of Brent crude oil, which rose close to 1.71%.The loonie continued its...

Canada – Real GDP shrank an annualized 1.6% in the second quarter of 2016 after expanding an upwardly revised 2.5% the prior quarter. Trade was a major drag on the economy on account of slumping...

Weak growth in Canada in the second quarterCanadian GDP data released yesterday showed lacklustre economic growth for the second quarter of 2016, as the country suffered its worst contraction since...

Statements from the Fed Vice-ChairYesterday, the U.S. dollar continued on the tear it started last Friday by posting additional gains against the other major currencies. Since the Fed Chair’s...

Other positive data from the United StatesA number of indicators are suggesting that U.S. consumers have done their duty for the third quarter of the year. In July, Personal Consumption Expenditures...

Economic Comments:Last week proved to be a rather strange period in the financial markets, as everyone’s attention seemed to be focused on the speech to be delivered by Janet Yellen, Chair of...

Monetary tightening ahead in the United States?On Friday at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen gave an eagerly awaited speech and her remarks did not disappoint....

Canada – Operating profits of corporations totalled $72.9 billion in the second quarter, down 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. That’s the worst year-on-year performance since...

Currencies “on hold”Yesterday was an unusual trading session for the USD/CAD pair. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil lost 3% on the release of weekly EIA inventories and the USD/CAD rate...

Positive U.S. data1. U.S. economic data continue to indicate that growth should be strong in the third quarter. July New Home Sales came out at a level not seen in close to nine years (654,000 units)....

Waiting for Jackson HoleDespite Canadian Wholesale Sales that came in well above expectations for June (+0.7% vs. +0.1%), the Canadian dollar (CAD) dipped slightly. We are experiencing a downward...

Energy prices quickly turned around last week in the wake of last month’s correction. Prices for WTI crude, Brent crude and diesel denominated in US dollars rose 8.8%, 8% and 7.5%, respectively...

Despite signs of weakness in recent economic fundamentals, the loonie appreciated against the U.S. dollar for a second consecutive week, finally ending the week up 0.75%. Many observers have pointed...