Investing.com - The U.S. dollar rose to fresh 11-1/2 year highs against its Canadian counterpart on Friday, as growing expectations for a U.S. rate hike next week continued to support the greenback, while declining oil prices weighed on demand for the Canadian currency.
USD/CAD hit 1.3679 during early U.S. trade, the pair's highest since June 2004; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3669, rising 0.32%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3528, Thursday's low and resistance at 1.3812.
Demand for the greenback continued to be underpinned by expectations that the Fed is on track to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006 at its upcoming meeting on December 15-16.
Higher interest rates would make the dollar more attractive to yield-seeking investors.
Data on Friday showed that U.S. retail sales rose 0.2% in November, compared to expectations for a 0.3% gain, after a 0.1% uptick the previous month.
Core retail sales, which exclude automobiles, increased by 0.4% last month, beating expectations for a 0.3% rise.
A separate report showed that U.S. producer prices rose 0.3% in November, compared to a 0.1% fall.
Core producer prices, which exclude food and energy, gained 0.3% in November, exceeding expectations for a 0.1% uptick.
Meanwhile, the commodity-related Canadian dollar continued to be hammered lower by an ongoing rout in oil prices. Crude oil futures for January delivery were down 1.17% at a seven-year low of $36.31 a barrel in U.S. morning trading.
The loonie was lower against the euro, with EUR/CAD gaining 0.41% to 1.4967.