The Canadian dollar ended weaker against the US currency on Friday, following the euro lower, as worries about Europe's debt crisis and disappointing domestic employment data ended a four-day winning streak. Despite the decline, the Canadian dollar notched its biggest weekly gain since July, buoyed by earlier progress on the European debt crisis and positive US economic data.
The euro fell against the dollar for the first time in five sessions, with investors wary of placing aggressive bets in favour of the currency ahead of a European Central Bank meeting and a European Union summit next week. "Generally what CAD did today is what euro did, a little weaker than yesterday, following a similar pattern," said Camilla Sutton, chief currency strategist at Scotia Capital.
"The US dollar started to gain ground. Oil is closing up higher, equities are a bit mixed. It's just anticipation over what is going to transpire this weekend and next week for Europe." The Canadian dollar ended the North American session at C$1.0183, or 98.20 US cents, down from Thursday's finish at C$1.0143 against the US dollar, or 98.59 US cents.
Markets have posted strong gains after central bank moves earlier this week cut funding costs for banks. Signs that euro zone policymakers are working hard to resolve a compromise deal ahead of a December 9 summit, viewed as make-or-break for the 12-year old single currency bloc, also lent support. Economic data was mixed, with Canadian employment disappointing and US jobs growth in line with expectations. The economy lost 18,600 jobs in the month following a hefty 54,000 drop in October, Statistics Canada said on Friday. As a result, the unemployment rate climbed to 7.4 percent from 7.3 percent.
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