USD/CAD slides below 1.4350 as USD struggles to extend recovery
- US Dollar Index struggles to rise above 101.50.
- WTI steadies above $23 ahead of EIA data.
- Durable Goods Orders in US increased unexpectedly in February.
The USD/CAD pair failed to hold above the 1.4400 mark and fell sharply in the early trading hours of the American session on Wednesday. As of writing, the pair was trading at 1.4322, erasing 0.95% on a daily basis.
Earlier in the day, the bearish pressure surrounding crude oil prices made it difficult for the CAD to gather strength against the greenback and allowed the pair to push higher. However, with the barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) finding support near the $23 handle and recovering a small portion of its losses, the pair started to react to the USD weakness.
Later in the session, the Energy Information Administration's (EIA) weekly US Crude Oil Stocks Change data will be watched closely by oil traders.
USD selloff weighs on the pair
After erasing 0.7% on Tuesday, the US Dollar Index (DXY) edged lower on Wednesday as investors cheered the confirmation of the $2 trillion US stimulus deal.
Although the DXY pulled away from the 101 handle tested during the European trading hours, it struggled to extend its rebound beyond 101.50 and was last down 0.35% on the day at 101.42. The data published by the US Census Bureau on Wednesday showed that Durable Goods Orders increased by 1.2% in February to beat the market expectation for a decline of 0.8% but failed to trigger a market reaction.
Technical levels to watch for