The Canadian economy gained 28.7K jobs in March, much better than expected. However, looking into the details, the economy actually lost 28.2K full time jobs and gained 56.8K part time ones. There are always big swings between full time and part time jobs.
USD/CAD is sliding to 1.2612.
The unemployment rate stands at 6.8%, which is a slight beat, especially as the participation rate ticked up from 65.8% to 65.9%.
Canada was expected to report a minimal loss of 0.5K jobs in March after a drop of 1K in February. The unemployment rate carried expectations for a rise from 6.8% to 6.9%.
USD/CAD was the rise towards the publication, trading around 1.2650. This is due to the strength of the greenback.
Here is the preview:Â USD/CAD: Trading the Canadian Employment Change
Earlier, Canadian housing starts were reported: they jumped to 190K from 151K seen beforehand and above expectations for 175K. US import prices slid by 0.3%, within expectations.
Oil prices have been fluctuating. Despite increased Saudi production and yet another surge in oil inventories in the US, we have seen some jumps in the price of the black gold. This helped the C$ gain some ground.
However, this did not last too long. Coupled with a strengthening of the dollar following the FOMC meeting minutes, Dollar/CAD turned north.
The Bank of Canada convenes next week to decide on the rates. While no change is expected, the employment data certainly impacts the tone.
In this week’s podcast, we  discuss: USDown or greenback comeback? And also touch other topics:
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