Investing.com - The U.S. dollar held steady at nearly 13-year highs against its Canadian counterpart on Monday, as ongoing concerns over declining oil prices continued to weigh on the Canadian currency.
Trading volumes were expected to remain thin on Monday with U.S. markets closed for the Martin Luther King Day holiday.
USD/CAD hit 1.4486 during early U.S. trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.4533.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.4338, Friday’s low and resistance at 1.4581, the session high and a nearly 13-year high.
Markets were jittery as oil prices fell below $28 per barrel on Monday, the lowest level in 12 years.
The renewed fall in oil prices came as Iranian exports were set to resume after Western sanctions were lifted, fueling fears over increased supplies amid a global supply glut and slowing demand.
The oil rout continued to weigh on the commodity-related Canadian dollar, amid mounting expectations that the Bank of Canada could ease monetary policy further at its upcoming meeting on Wednesday in response to low oil prices.
Elsewhere, the People's Bank of China said Monday it is to start implementing a reserve requirement ratio on offshore banks' domestic deposits, a move intended to deter offshore speculators betting that the currency will continue to fall.
The PBOC also set a firmer mid-point rate for the yuan than on Friday.
The loonie was higher against the euro, with EUR/CAD edging down 0.18% to 1.5833.