WINNIPEG – The Canadian dollar held steady on Friday to start the month of April.
As of 8:38 a.m. CDT, the loonie was at US$0.8003 or US$1=C$1.2496, same as its closing value on Thursday. Canada’s federal carbon price increases to C$50 per tonne on Friday, increasing gas prices by 2.2 cents per litre.
The United States Dollar Index gained 0.33 of a point at 98.64.
Benchmark crude oil prices are in a downturn after the White House announced the release of one million barrels of oil per day from U.S. strategic reserves for the next six months. Brent crude oil decreased US$0.75 per barrel to US$103.96. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropped US$1.23 to US$99.05/barrel. Western Canadian Select (WCS) fell US$1.54 to US$87.96/barrel.
The TSX/S&P Composite Index jumped 110.51 points to 22,000.67.
Gold plunged US$24.10 per ounce to US$1,929.90.
