Canada lost 39.4K jobs in the month of July. It was expected to gain 6.2K jobs in July (after losing 0.4K jobs in June). The unemployment rate rises to 7.2%. Canada wasn’t expected to experience a change in the unemployment rate that stood on 7.1% in June.
The Canadian dollar was strengthening towards the publication, with USD/CAD slipping under 1.03. The pair totally changed direction and leaped to above 1.0340.
The participation rate slid from 66.7% to 66.5%. So, the unemployment rate would have jumped to 7.4% without this change in the participation rate.
Up to this report, things seemed good. All in all, the Canadian economy is doing well, with an ongoing rise in GDP and a recent rise in oil prices, even though they haven’t pushed through even higher. The prospects of constructing the Keystone XL pipe is also helping the loonie.
Earlier, Canadian housing starts remained almost unchanged at 193K.
The US dollar has been descending in recent days, and USD/CAD enjoyed a drop form above 1.04 towards 1.03. Support is at 1.0250. High resistance lies at 1.0446.
For more, see the USDCAD forecast.
