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Canadian dollar weakens 0.3% against the greenback
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The value of building permits falls 4% in January
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Price of U.S. oil decreases 2.6%
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Canadian bond yields ease across curve
TORONTO, March 3 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Friday and was headed for a weekly decline, as oil prices fell and domestic data added to evidence of a slowdown in the housing market. The price of oil, one of Canada's major exports, gave back some of its recent gains. U.S. crude oil futures fell 2.6% to $76.16 a barrel, while the Canadian dollar was trading 0.3% lower at 1.3635 to the greenback, or 73.34 U.S. cents. The currency moved in a range of 1.3556 to 1.3639. For the week, it was on track to decline 0.2%. The value of Canadian building permits fell by 4.0% in January from December and were down 5% year-over-year, data from Statistics Canada showed. It follows aggressive interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada over the past year to tackle inflation. The central bank has signaled a pause in its tightening campaign and is expected to leave its benchmark rate on hold at a 15-year high of 4.50% next Wednesday. Separate data showed that Canadian labor productivity fell by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. It was the third consecutive quarterly decline. Still, analysts are sticking to their forecasts for a stronger Canadian dollar over the coming year, expecting an improved global economy and less central bank uncertainty to support the commodity-linked currency, a Reuters poll showed. Data on Friday from China and the euro zone pointed to economic growth, giving equity markets a boost. Canadian government bond yields were lower across the curve, tracking a pullback in U.S. yields from recent highs. The 10-year eased 6.7 basis points to 3.408%. (Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
