USD/CAD climbs to daily highs above 1.4150 as WTI extends slide below $20
- Crude oil selloff continues, WTI looks to end March 57% lower.
- US Dollar Index recovers above 99 on Monday.
- Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index plunged to -70 in March.
The USD/CAD pair extended its daily rally during the American trading hours and touched a daily high of 1.4185 as falling crude oil prices continue to weigh on the commodity-sensitive CAD. As of writing, the pair was up 1.35% on a daily basis at 1.4165.
WTI looks to end March below $20
Concerns over an unprecedented drop in the global energy demand due to worldwide lockdowns to stop the spread of the coronavirus force crude oil prices to remain under pressure. As of writing, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate was erasing 11% on the day and trading at its lowest level in nine years at $19.45. For the month of March, the WTI is down 57%.
Meanwhile, an official for Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry announced that the kingdom was planning to increase crude oil exports starting from May by about 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 10.6 million bpd to accelerate the WTI's fall.
On the other hand, the broad-based USD strength as reflected by the decisive rebound in the US Dollar Index (DXY) provides an additional boost to the pair.
Although the data from the US showed that the Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index plunged to an all-time low of -70 in March from 1.2 in February, the DXY rose above the 99 handle and was last seen adding 0.9% on a daily basis at 99.15.
On Tuesday, the Canadian economic docket will feature the monthly GDP data for January, which is likely to be ignored. The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index from the US will be looked upon for fresh catalysts as well.
Technical levels to watch for