Investing.com - The U.S. dollar erased gains against its Canadian counterpart on Friday, as the release of upbeat Canadian employment data boosted demand for the local currency, although declining oil prices limited gains.
USD/CAD pulled away from 1.2759, the session high, to hit 1.2691 during early U.S. trade, down 0.24%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2618, the low of April 22 and resistance at 1.2839, the high of June 7.
Statistics Canada reported on Friday that the number of employed people rose by 13,800 in May, blowing past expectations for a 3,800 rise, after a 2,100 decline the previous month.
The report also showed that Canada’s unemployment rate fell to 6.9% last month from 7.1% in April. Analysts had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged in May.
But the Canadian dollar’s gains were limited as oil prices moved lower for a second consecutive session on Friday amid profit-taking.
The greenback remained supported after the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending June 4 decreased by 4,000 to 264,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 268,000.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to rise by 3,000 to 270,000 last week.
But sentiment on the U.S. dollar remained vulnerable after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen on Monday indicated that interest rates won’t rise until uncertainty over the economic outlook is resolved.
Yellen said she expects the economic recovery to continue but gave no indications on the timing of a next rate increase.
The loonie was higher against the euro, with EUR/CAD sliding 0.44% to 1.4335.
The euro remained under pressure after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi warned on Thursday that weak growth in the euro zone could cause “lasting damage” to the region.