Canadian dollar eases against greenback

TORONTO: The Canadian dollar edged lower against its US counterpart on Friday but held much of its weekly gain, as domestic data showed Canada’s manufacturing sector expanded in April at the fastest pace in nearly four years.

The loonie was trading 0.1 percent lower at 1.3585 per US dollar, or 73.61 US cents, after moving in a range of 1.3551 to 1.3593. For the week, the loonie was up 0.6 percent, notching its fourth straight weekly gain.

“In the shorter run, elevated energy prices may keep market focus on the risk of tighter BoC monetary policy,” Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret, strategists at Scotiabank, said in a note.