CANADIAN DOLLAR EXTENDS HIGHER AGAINST WEAKENING GREENBACK ON THURSDAY

Canadian Dollar mixed on the day but climbs over US Dollar.

Canada brings its own labor figures to US NFP Friday.

USD/CAD breaks down below 1.3500 on weaker Greenback flows.

The Canadian Dollar (CAD) found some room on the high end above the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday. The USD/CAD pair slipped below the 1.3500 handle as markets buckle down for the wait to Friday’s US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) jobs report.

Canada answers the US NFP print with labor figures of its own on Friday. American markets will be switching to Daylight Savings Time this weekend, while Canada will be largely absent from the economic calendar with strictly low-tier data on offer next week. However, plenty of US data will arrive to drive the markets, with February’s US Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation slated for next Tuesday.

Canada’s Unemployment Rate is expected to tick higher from 5.7% to 5.8% on Friday.

Canadian Net Change in Employment in February is forecast to print at 20K versus the previous month’s 37.3K.

Friday’s US NFP print is expected to come in at 200K for February, down from January’s 11-month peak of 353K.

NFP Preview: Forecasts from 10 major banks, employment continues to rise strongly