Thoughts on $CADUSD and next week's CPI data
Watching $CADUSD with interest ahead of the upcoming Canadian CPI release. The pair is currently trading around 0.71619, having been quite range-bound recently. We've seen some resilience in the US dollar, and that's kept a lid on any significant upside for the CAD, despite some decent domestic employment figures.
My take is that a softer-than-expected CPI print could easily see $CADUSD testing the 0.7100 handle before month-end. Conversely, a hotter number might offer some temporary relief, potentially pushing us towards 0.7200, but I see that as a harder fight given the broader USD strength we're observing. I'd put the odds of seeing a dip towards 0.7100 at about 60% if CPI misses expectations, largely driven by the Bank of Canada's current dovish leaning compared to the Fed. Any hawkish surprises would of course shift the calculus, but the prevailing narrative suggests caution from the BoC. This isn't advice, just how I'm framing my own read of the situation.
A soft CPI print might be priced in already, given the recent range-bound movement. I'm more interested in how sustained any break below 0.71500 would be, considering the broader USD strength.