Citizens of Ukraine’s Crimea region went to the polls yesterday to vote in a referendum on whether the province should join Russia. With approximately half the ballots counted, it appears that 95% of voters favour annexation. Neither the United States nor the European Union has recognized the vote, and both have resumed warning of economic consequences for Russia if it continues its actions in Ukraine. Markets do not appear overly worried by these recent developments however, with S&P 500 futures up 0.5% and the loonie gaining close to 50 bps against the greenback.
In economic news, International Transactions in Securities for January will be announced on both sides of the 49th parallel. Although there are no economists’ forecasts for the Canadian data, the trend in recent months has been less than encouraging, as investors withdrew close to $4.3 billion from the Canadian market in December. South of the border, economists expect $30 billion in inflows to have entered the U.S. market in January, which would partially explain the strength of the greenback, particularly against the loonie, in the first quarter of 2014. Have a great Monday! Xavier Villemaire
Range of the day: 1.1025-1.1125
