Investing.com - The U.S. dollar trimmed losses against its Canadian counterpart on Thursday, as a report showing that U.S. jobless claims fell in line with expectations last week boosted optimism over the strength of the economy, while weak Canadian data weighed on the local currency.
USD/CAD pulled away from 1.3247, the pair's lowest since November 12, to hit 1.3272 during early U.S. trade, still down 0.24%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3221, the low of November 12 and resistance at 1.3372, the high of November 16.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported on Thursday that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending November 14 declined by 5,000 to 271,000 from the previous week’s total of 276,000.
The greenback remained supported after the minutes of the Federal Reserve's October meeting showed on Wednesday that a majority of board members are in favor of a December rate hike.
"While no decision had been made, it may well become appropriate to initiate the normalization process at the next meeting," the minutes said.
In Canada, data on Thursday showed that wholesale sales ticked down 0.1% in September, compared to expectations for a 0.3% rise, after a 0.1% fall the previous month.
The loonie was lower against the euro, with EUR/CAD gaining 0.35% to 1.4231.
The euro's gains were limited however, after the minutes of the European Central Bank’s October meeting said the risk that it would miss its inflation target again has increased.
Most members of the Governing Council shared the view that inflation risks have increased and anticipated the timing of inflation getting back to target is likely to be pushed back again.
The central bank reiterated that it is ready to act and would reexamine its policies at its upcoming meeting on December 3.