Canadian Dollar Slides As Oil Prices Drop

(RTTNews) - The Canadian dollar weakened against most major currencies in the Asian session on Monday, as the crude oil prices fell due to fears of a U.S. recession mounted amid the tariff turmoil.

Crude oil prices moved lower amid easing concerns about sanctions on Iranian oil exports after progress in nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery slipped $1.09 or 1.7 percent to $63.60 a barrel.

Trade worries mounted after U.S. President Donald Trump on Easter Sunday posted about a 'non-tariff cheating' list, warning trade partners of non-tariff-related offenses that could spoil relations with the United States.

Meanwhile, China has warned it will hit back at countries that make deals with the U.S. that hurt Beijing's interests.

The comments came after reports that the U.S. plans to pressure governments to restrict trade with China in exchange for exemptions to U.S. tariffs.

In economic news, the People's Bank of China left its interest rates unchanged for the sixth successive session on Monday.

The central bank retained its one-year loan prime rate at 3.10 percent. Likewise, the five-year LPR, the benchmark for mortgage rates, was 3.60 percent, unchanged from the previous month. The decision matched expectations.

In the Asian trading today, the Canadian dollar fell to a 5-day low of 0.8868 against the Australian dollar, from Friday's closing value of 0.8828. The loonie is likely to find support around the 0.91 region.

Against the yen and the euro, the loonie slipped to near 2-week lows of 101.87 and 1.5915 from last week's closing quotes of 102.66 and 1.5774, respectively. If the loonie extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 100.00 against the yen and 1.60 against the euro.

Looking ahead, U.S. Consumer Board's leading index for March is slated for release in the New York session.