C$ dips amid Brexit uncertainty, US recession fears

TORONTO: The Canadian dollar edged lower against its US counterpart on Wednesday, extending its pullback from a near two-week high the previous day, as the greenback broadly rose and investors worried about the global economic outlook.

The US dollar rose against a basket of currencies as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's move to limit parliament's opportunity to derail his Brexit plans weighed on sterling.

US stocks declined after moves in the US bond market brought back fears of a recession as the trade war between the United States and China drags on.

Canada exports many commodities, including oil, so its economy could be hurt by a slowdown in the global economy.

US crude prices were up 2.6% at $56.34 a barrel after industry data showing a fall in stockpiles of US crude somewhat eased worries about subdued demand due to the US-China trade war.

At 9:39 a.m. (1339 GMT), the Canadian dollar was trading 0.1% lower at 1.3302 to the greenback, or 75.18 US cents. The currency, which notched on Tuesday its strongest intraday level since Aug. 14 at 1.3225, traded in a range of 1.3282 to 1.3319.

The decline for the loonie came ahead of the release on Friday of Canada's third-quarter gross domestic product data, which could help guide expectations for next week's Bank of Canada interest rate decision.

Money markets expect the central bank to ease rates by the end of the year.

Canadian government bond prices were higher across the yield curve in sympathy with US Treasuries. The two-year rose 3.5 Canadian cents to yield 1.32% and the 10-year was up 11 Canadian cents to yield 1.113%.