TORONTO - The loonie hovered below its American cousin on Wednesday as the greenback regained some strength against the Canadian dollar and other currencies, including the euro.
The Canadian dollar was at 99.49 U.S., down 0.39 of a cent, at the close of trading on Wednesday, falling after starting the morning at parity with the U.S. dollar.
The loonie has been bolstered in recent months by its relatively strong economy, while the American greenback has fallen against other currencies.
But on Wednesday it had to contend with a U.S. dollar bolstered by Greece's debt crisis, which has weighed on global stock prices and battered the value of the euro.
A commentary from CanadianForex suggested the loonie could face further pressures in the short term.
"Expect to see some Canadian dollar weakness creep into the market over the next day or so as players lighten up positions with an eye towards reloading at better levels," the foreign exchange services firm wrote in its daily analysis.
However, economists say it is only a matter of time -- maybe days -- before the currency stakes its ground above the line for an extended period.
A jolt could come as early as Friday when March employment numbers are released by Statistics Canada. Consensus forecasts predict 25,000 jobs will be added, according to BMO Capital Markets, and that could boost sentiment about the economy.
The loonie was briefly worth more than US$1 early Wednesday, reaching as high as 100.03 cents U.S., before official North American trading began, but slipped below parity just before Canadian and U.S. markets opened.
The loonie returned to parity for the first time in 20 months Tuesday, but ended the day at 99.88 cents U.S.
