USD/CAD Price Forecast: Slides for third straight trading day
- USD/CAD falls further to near 1.4250 amid strength in the Canadian Dollar.
- Investors doubt that the BoC will continue reducing interest rates after the release of the hot CPI report for February.
- The risk sentiment remains cautious as US President Trump is expected to announce significant tariffs on April 2.
The USD/CAD pair extends its downside move for the third day in a row on Wednesday and slides to near 1.4250. The Loonie pair weakens as the Canadian Dollar (CAD) traders higher against its peers, except antipodeans.
Canadian Dollar PRICE Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Canadian Dollar (CAD) against listed major currencies today. Canadian Dollar was the strongest against the British Pound.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | -0.03% | 0.30% | 0.15% | -0.20% | -0.39% | -0.48% | 0.10% | |
| EUR | 0.03% | 0.33% | 0.15% | -0.17% | -0.35% | -0.45% | 0.12% | |
| GBP | -0.30% | -0.33% | -0.14% | -0.49% | -0.67% | -0.78% | -0.17% | |
| JPY | -0.15% | -0.15% | 0.14% | -0.34% | -0.55% | -0.63% | -0.04% | |
| CAD | 0.20% | 0.17% | 0.49% | 0.34% | -0.16% | -0.28% | 0.32% | |
| AUD | 0.39% | 0.35% | 0.67% | 0.55% | 0.16% | -0.10% | 0.50% | |
| NZD | 0.48% | 0.45% | 0.78% | 0.63% | 0.28% | 0.10% | 0.59% | |
| CHF | -0.10% | -0.12% | 0.17% | 0.04% | -0.32% | -0.50% | -0.59% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Canadian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent CAD (base)/USD (quote).
The CAD rises as investors hope that the Bank of Canada (BoC) could adopt a neutral monetary policy stance after remaining significantly dovish since June 2024. These expectations have stemmed from February’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which showed that inflation accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace.
However, the faith of the Loonie is tied to United States (US) President Donald Trump’s tariff agenda. Trump is poised to announce a slew of tariffs for his trading partners on April 2.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback’s value against six major currencies, struggles to break above the immediate resistance of 104.50, which is the highest level in almost three weeks. Going forward, investors will focus on the US Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index (PCE) data for February, which will be released on Friday. The inflation data will influence market expectations for the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy outlook.
USD/CAD holds above the 100-period Exponential Moving Average (EMA), which is around 1.4226, suggesting that the overall trend is bullish.
The 14-period Relative Strength Index (RSI) oscillates in the 40.00-60.00 range, indicating a sideways trend.
Going forward, an upside move would emerge above the March 10 high of 1.4470, which will open the door toward the psychological resistance of 1.4500 and the January 30 high of 1.4595.
On the contrary, a breakdown below the February 14 low of 1.4151 by the pair would expose it to the December 9 low of 1.4094, followed by the December 6 low of 1.4020.
USD/CAD daily chart
Canadian Dollar FAQs
The key factors driving the Canadian Dollar (CAD) are the level of interest rates set by the Bank of Canada (BoC), the price of Oil, Canada’s largest export, the health of its economy, inflation and the Trade Balance, which is the difference between the value of Canada’s exports versus its imports. Other factors include market sentiment – whether investors are taking on more risky assets (risk-on) or seeking safe-havens (risk-off) – with risk-on being CAD-positive. As its largest trading partner, the health of the US economy is also a key factor influencing the Canadian Dollar.
The Bank of Canada (BoC) has a significant influence on the Canadian Dollar by setting the level of interest rates that banks can lend to one another. This influences the level of interest rates for everyone. The main goal of the BoC is to maintain inflation at 1-3% by adjusting interest rates up or down. Relatively higher interest rates tend to be positive for the CAD. The Bank of Canada can also use quantitative easing and tightening to influence credit conditions, with the former CAD-negative and the latter CAD-positive.
The price of Oil is a key factor impacting the value of the Canadian Dollar. Petroleum is Canada’s biggest export, so Oil price tends to have an immediate impact on the CAD value. Generally, if Oil price rises CAD also goes up, as aggregate demand for the currency increases. The opposite is the case if the price of Oil falls. Higher Oil prices also tend to result in a greater likelihood of a positive Trade Balance, which is also supportive of the CAD.
While inflation had always traditionally been thought of as a negative factor for a currency since it lowers the value of money, the opposite has actually been the case in modern times with the relaxation of cross-border capital controls. Higher inflation tends to lead central banks to put up interest rates which attracts more capital inflows from global investors seeking a lucrative place to keep their money. This increases demand for the local currency, which in Canada’s case is the Canadian Dollar.
Macroeconomic data releases gauge the health of the economy and can have an impact on the Canadian Dollar. Indicators such as GDP, Manufacturing and Services PMIs, employment, and consumer sentiment surveys can all influence the direction of the CAD. A strong economy is good for the Canadian Dollar. Not only does it attract more foreign investment but it may encourage the Bank of Canada to put up interest rates, leading to a stronger currency. If economic data is weak, however, the CAD is likely to fall.
Author
Sagar Dua
FXStreet
Sagar Dua is associated with the financial markets from his college days. Along with pursuing post-graduation in Commerce in 2014, he started his markets training with chart analysis.
