USD/CAD struggles to shakes off bearish pressure, trades around 1.3070
- WTI closes in on $62 to help CAD stay strong.
- US Dollar Index extends slide after erasing 0.7% last week.
- Coming up: Pending Home Sales and Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index from US.
The USD/CAD pair erased 160 pips last week pressured bu rising crude oil prices and the broad-based selling pressure surrounding the USD. After touching its lowest level in two months at 1.3062 on Friday, the pair seems to have gone into a consolidation phase on Monday and was last down 0.06% on the day at 1.3069.
Crude oil rally continues
Easing concerns over a protracted US-China trade war and upbeat macroeconomic data releases from China helped crude oil preserve its bullish momentum toward the end of the year. The barrel of West Texas Intermediate added 2.17% last week and registered weekly gains for the fourth straight time to help the commodity-sensitive loonie outperform its major rivals. At the moment, the WTI is posting modest daily gains near $61.80.
On the other hand, the greenback struggled to find demand despite a lack of fundamental drivers. The upbeat market mood as reflected by rising global equity indexes' last week made it difficult for the relatively safer USD to attract investors. The US Dollar Index lost 0.7% last week and continued to edge lower on Monday. As of writing, the index was down 0.25% on a daily basis at 96.77.
Later in the session, Pending Home Sales and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Manufacturing Index data will be looked upon for fresh impetus.
Technical levels to watch for