TORONTO — The loonie had its best performance in about five weeks after the Bank of Canada was the first global central bank to take action because of a stronger economic rebound.
The Canadian dollar reached a high of 80.27 cents but dipped below 80 cents at the end of the day to trade for 79.78 cents, compared with 79.54 cents US on Tuesday.
The move higher followed the central bank’s decision to taper bond purchases, suggesting that elevated inflation would return to its two per cent target earlier than previously forecast and raising its growth outlook for the year.
Meanwhile, the S&P/TSX composite index closed up 102.47 points to 19,143.25.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 316.01 points at 34,137.31. The S&P 500 index was up 38.48 points at 4,173.42, while the Nasdaq composite was up 163.95 points at 13,950.22.
The June crude contract was down US$1.32 at US$61.35 per barrel and the May natural gas contract was down 3.5 cents at US$2.69 per mmBTU.
The June gold contract was up US$14.70 at US$1,793.10 an ounce and the May copper contract was up 6.6 cents at nearly US$4.28 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 21, 2021.
