Investing.com - The U.S. dollar was higher against its Canadian counterpart on Thursday, after data showed that he U.S. economy grew less than expected in the second quarter and that U.S. jobless claims rose less than expected last week.
USD/CAD hit 1.3026 during early U.S. trade, the pair's highest since Tuesday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3002, gaining 0.44%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2862, the low of July 29 and resistance at 1.3043, the high of July 28.
The U.S. Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 2.3% in the three months ending June 30, missing expectations for growth of 2.6%. The U.S. economy grew 0.6% in the first quarter, compared to a previously reported contraction of 0.2%.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending July 25 rose by 12,000 to 267,000 from the previous week’s total of 255,000. Analysts had expected initial jobless claims to rise by 15,000 to 270,000 last week.
The data came after the Fed said in its rate statement on Wednesday that the economy and the labor market had continued to strengthen, reinforcing expectations for an initial rate hike at its September meeting.
Fed officials said they felt the economy had recovered from a first-quarter slowdown and was now "expanding moderately."
Fed Chair Janet Yellen has said the central bank could raise rates as soon as September if the economy continues to improve as expected.
The loonie was steady against the euro, with EUR/CAD at 1.4224.