By MarketsFarm
WINNIPEG, Dec. 18 (MarketsFarm) – The Canadian dollar was weaker on Friday, with profit-taking ahead of the weekend as the currency posted its first weekly decline in five weeks relative to its United States counterpart.
The Canadian dollar closed at US$0.7828 or US$1=C$1.2775, which compares with Thursday’s North American close of US$0.7863 or US$1=C$1.2718.
Canadian retail sales were up 0.4 per cent in October, according to a report from Statistics Canada. The growth beat average estimates calling for a 0.2 per cent increase.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up by 1.45 per cent, at US$49.06 per barrel.
The TSX Composite Index was down on the day, losing 118.31 points, or 0.67 per cent, to close at 17,534.63 points.
Canada’s agricultural sector performed as follows:
Buhler Industries—————-up $ 0.17 at $ 2.68
Linamar Corp.——————–up $ 0.81 at $ 70.55
Maple Leaf Foods—————–up $ 0.02 at $ 28.26
Nutrien Ltd.———————dn $ 0.52 at $ 61.14
Ritchie Bros Auctioneers Inc.—-up $ 1.23 at $ 87.06
Rocky Mountain Dealerships Inc.–up $ 0.01 at $ 7.40
(All figures are in Canadian dollars.)
