Quotes from Western Union:
- The loonie flirted with one-week lows against its U.S. counterpart, still held hostage to the oil trade. The market seems to think the recent rebound in oil has been excessive. Consequently, crude was back under pressure and below $50, weighing on commodity-vulnerable currencies like Canada's.
- Canadian retail sales on Friday are forecast to fall 0.4% for December. Such a weak reading if realized could see the loonie test recent six-year lows against the U.S. dollar as it would strengthen calls for another Bank of Canada rate cut. The BOC next meets on March 4.
