Canadian Dollar Holds at 1-Month High
2026-04-20 13:27
By
Andre Joaquim
1 min. read
The Canadian dollar strengthened to 1.37 per USD in April, the strongest in one month, amid support from high oil prices and the outlook of a hawkish Bank of Canada.
Despite momentary signals of de-escalation between the US and Iran, energy exports from the Persian Gulf remained targeted by Iranian forces and the US Navy seized an Iranian cargo ship, effectively halting tanker flows and trade in the Hormuz chokepoint.
The surge in energy prices increased the inflows of foreign exchange into the Canadian financial system as Canada exports a large volume of energy, supporting the loonie.
In turn, the resulting upswing in inflation drove the BoC to signal it will combat risks of higher energy prices resulting in entrenched inflation, also supporting the currency.
The developments drove the Canadian dollar to outperform other G10 currencies since March as the global economy increased dollar positions due to its safe-haven status.