Investing.com –The Canadian Dollar strengthened against its U.S. Counterpart today as risk-sentiment remained robust, with U.S. Retail Sales missing expectations and reviving hopes that the Fed will move to cut rates in May.
Following the release, bets of a rate cut in May edged up to 40%, while the odds for June came in just under 80%,
The greenback meanwhile pared back against a basket of major currencies following the Retail Sales release.
Retail sales fell by the most in 10 months in January, indicating a slowdown in consumer spending, the data drove profit-taking on the U.S. dollar after this week’s post-CPI fuelled surge.
On a technical level for the USDCAD pair, analysts at FXStreet note that “Daily candlesticks continue to see friction from the 200-day SMA at 1.3478.”
“Despite USD/CAD testing new highs consistently, progress has been thin as the pair threatens to tip into a consolidation pattern between 1.3400 and 13600.”