- USD/CAD posts small gains during the American session.
- US Dollar Index stays below 90.00 as focus shifts to FOMC Minutes.
- Falling crude oil prices weigh on CAD on Wednesday.
The USD/CAD pair staged a modest rebound during the American trading hours and advanced to a session high of 1.2123 before going into a consolidation phase. As of writing, the pair was up 0.15% on the day at 1.2081.
Eyes on FOMC Minutes
Earlier in the day, the data from Canada showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to 3.4% on a yearly basis in April from 2.2% in March. This reading came in higher than the market expectation of 3.2% and helped the CAD gather strength. Nevertheless, the sharp decline witnessed in crude oil prices made it difficult for the commodity-sensitive loonie to continue to find demand.
After losing nearly 2% on Tuesday, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) extended its slide and touched its lowest level in three weeks at $61.94. As of writing, WTI was trading at $63.60, where it was down 2.% on a daily basis.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index clings to modest daily gains at 89.90 supported by safe-haven flows. Although Wall Street’s main indexes managed to pull away from daily lows, they still lose between 0.3% and 0.7%.
Later in the session, the FOMC will release the minutes of its April meeting and investors will look for fresh clues regarding inflation expectations and the timing of asset tapering.