WINNIPEG – The Canadian dollar slid downwards Thursday morning.
The loonie was at US$0.7340 or US$1=C$1.3624, down from US$0.7363 or US$1=C$1.3582 on Wednesday.
The United States Dollar Index added 0.26 of a point at 104.15. The U.S. Commerce Department reported that the country’s economy grew at an annual rate of 1.3 per cent in the first quarter.
Crude oil dropped due to wariness over the lack of a U.S. debt ceiling deal between Democrats and Republicans. Russia’s deputy prime minister also said in an interview he does not believe there will be any more crude oil production cuts. Brent crude oil fell US$2.07 to US$76.29 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) tumbled US$2.08 at US$72.26/barrel.
The TSX/S&P Composite Index lost 110.24 points to 19,817.45.
Gold gave up US$16.70 per ounce to US$1,947.90.