By MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, Jan. 6 (MarketsFarm) – The Canadian dollar was virtually unchanged on Wednesday morning in light of small gains for the loonie’s United States counterpart.
As of 8:47 CST, the Canadian dollar was at US$0.7874 or C$1.2700, compared to Tuesday’s close of US$0.7870 or C$1.2707.
On the U.S. Dollar Index the greenback was up 0.201 of a point, but remained well below 90 points at 89.610.
Benchmark crude oil prices were higher Wednesday morning, following the surprise announcement by Saudi Arabia that it will cut its oil production by one million barrels per day in February and March. However, those gains were tempered by an OPEC report that said the multi-national oil cartel increased its production in December, producing nearly 25.6 million barrels per day.
Brent crude oil rose 28 cents at US$53.88 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was up 10 cents at US$50.03 per barrel. Western Canadian Select (WCS) gained 39 cents at US$35.02 per barrel.
At the start of trading, the TSX/S&P Composite Index was up 103.18 points at 17,785.69.
Gold dropped US$20.18 at US$1,929.83 per ounce.
