The Canadian dollar failed to hold on to a good portion of gains against the US currency, while a steep bond rally turned deeply negative, despite a weak US jobs report on Friday. The Canadian dollar finished at C$1.2475to the US dollar or 80.16 US cents, up slightly from C$1.2483 to the US dollar, or 80.11 US cents, at Thursday's close.
The Canadian dollar ran to its highest level in more than three weeks, at C$1.2425, after a report showed the US economy had added just 78,000 jobs last month, far fewer than the expected 185,000, and a sharp slowdown after a 274,000 job surge in April.
It was the weakest month for US confirms job growth since August 2003, although the unemployment rate edged to 5.1 percent, its lowest level since September 2001. But, the US dollar showed a resilient face and the Canadian dollar subsequently gave up most of its gains against the greenback.
"It seems like the market viewed the initial selloff after the nonfarm (jobs report) as an opportunity to buy dollars again," said George Davis, chief technical strategist at RBC Capital Markets, calling the effect a mixed picture for the Lonnie.
"I think the cross-flows into Canadian dollar are basically what is preventing us from trading aggressively above C$1.25 at this point." The Canadian dollar has generally pushed higher in the past week, partly because it has been seen as an attractive alternative to the euro, which has come under pressure from political and economic uncertainty.