C$ extends pullback from 7-month high as oil prices fall

TORONTO: The Canadian dollar weakened against its US counterpart on Thursday as oil prices fell and rising US jobless claims weighed on investor sentiment, with the loonie extending its pullback from a seven-month high the day before.

The loonie was trading 0.2% lower at 1.3238 to the greenback, or 75.54 US cents. The currency, which on Wednesday touched its strongest intraday in nearly seven months at 1.3133, traded in a range of 1.3198 to 1.3241.

Wall Street's main equity indexes were set to open lower after weekly jobless claims rose unexpectedly back above the 1 million mark last week, lending weight to the Federal Reserve's view of a difficult road to economic recovery. Canada sends about 75% of its exports to the United States, including oil.

US crude prices were down 1.7% at $42.22 a barrel on demand concerns, while the US dollar added to its rally from the previous day when less dovish than expected minutes from last month's Fed policy meeting prompted bears to buy into the heavily shorted currency.

The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which tracks data collected from public land registries to measure changes for repeat sales of single-family homes, showed prices were up 5.5% on an annual basis. That was the second consecutive month of year-over-year deceleration.

Canada added 1,149,800 jobs in July, breaking a four-month streak of declines, led by increased hiring in the trade, transportation and utilities sectors, a report from payroll services provider ADP showed.

Canadian government bond yields were lower across a flatter curve in sympathy with US Treasuries. The 10-year was down 3.5 basis points at 0.547%.

Canada's retail sales report for June is due on Friday.