TORONTO: The Canadian dollar traded little changed against the US currency on Friday, with weaker commodity prices weighing on sentiment and traders looking for indications North America is brushing off global economic stumbles.
Commodity prices and other currencies influenced by them also struggled as traders awaited clarity on whether heavily indebted Spain would request a bailout to shore up its finances. A bailout request is widely seen as positive as it would remove some uncertainty from financial markets.
The Canadian dollar received some support from news US consumer sentiment unexpectedly rose in October to its highest level in five years as optimism about the overall economy improved.
"Ultimately we need to see some signs that the NorthAmerican economy is holding up," said Jeremy Stretch, head of foreign exchange strategy at CIBC World Markets in London.
At 10:30 a.m. (1430 GMT), the Canadian currency was at C$0.9796 versus the US dollar, or $1.0208, down slightly from Thursday's North American session close of C$0.9787 to the greenback, or $1.0218.
It moved in a narrow range of C$0.98 and C$0.9768 in the session, and was on track to close out the week much where it started it.
The currency pair "has been trading range bound for the most part, content with where it has been, (and) is looking for a major catalyst for direction. With no major headlines expected today, trading could be subdued," Rahim Madhavji, president at Knightsbridge Foreign Exchange said in a note to clients, adding that the currency could trade between C$0.9720 and C$0.9820 during the session.
Canadian government bond prices rose. The two-year bond added 3 Canadian cents to yield 1.137 percent, while the benchmark 10-year bond gained 14 Canadian cents to yield 1.793 percent.
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