By Commodity News Service Canada
July 11 (CNS Canada) — The Canadian dollar took heavy hits over night, following the United States announcement that it plans to charge new tariffs on another US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods.
The Bank of Canada was also expected to raise its key lending rate later today to 1.75 per cent from 1.5 per cent.
The Canadian dollar traded at C$1.3131 compared to the U.S. dollar at 8:52 EDT, or C$0.7616 per US$1. It closed yesterday at C$1.3125, or C$0.7619 per US$1.
The OPEC group of oil-producing countries is forecasting slower world demand for oil over the next year as consumption slows and competitors continue to pump more oil into the system. Oil has climbed above US$80 per barrel this year for the first time since 2014, but has since fallen back to US$77 for Brent crude.
West Texas Intermediate crude traded at US$73.31 per barrel early this morning, a decline of 0.80 per cent.
The S&P/TSX index shed 95.05 points this morning, or 0.57 per cent to 16,453 at 8:48 CDT.
