CAD: The only major currency to gain against the USD last week - BBH

Research Team at BBH, notes that the Canadian dollar was the only major currency to gain against the US dollar last week (~0.3%) while the Toronto stock exchange was the second-best performing major stock market last week (~2%) behind Japanese shares (Topix +3.6%). 

Key Quotes

“Oil prices snapped a three-week decline.  But, it is not unusual for the Canadian dollar to outperform European currencies and the yen in a strong US dollar environment.  What is impressive of the even the minor Canadian dollar gains is that it come as US two-year interest rate premiums over Canada rose to its highest level in 10-months.  At 38 bp it has risen 12 bp over the past two weeks.”  

“The greenback's highs were made at the start of last week (~CAD1.3590) and the attempted retest before the weekend was rebuffed, after a seemingly bullish outside advancing session was recorded the previous day.  The CAD1.3575 area houses the upper Bollinger Band and the 50% retracement of the US dollar's decline from the late-January high, a little below CAD1.37 to May low near CAD1.2460. To be anything significant from a technical perspective, the US dollar pullback needs to extend through CAD1.3400.”