TORONTO, Aug 28 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, as oil prices fell and investors took stock of recent gains for the currency which lifted it to a five-month high.
The loonie was trading 0.3% lower at 1.3480 per U.S. dollar, or 74.18 U.S. cents, after earlier touching its strongest since March 8 at 1.3438.
The currency was on track to advance 2.4% in August, which would be its biggest monthly advance since June 2023.
"The CAD is pausing for a respite," said Tony Valente, a senior FX dealer at AscendantFX. "Month-end flows into the USD usually dominate the last couple of days of the month, especially after the losses it (the dollar) has sustained across the board this month."
The U.S. dollar clawed back some recent losses against a basket of major currencies, while the price of oil, one of Canada's major exports, was trading 1% lower at $74.80 a barrel after a smaller-than-expected draw in U.S. crude stockpiles and as concerns over Chinese demand persisted.
Canadian second-quarter GDP data, due on Friday, is expected to show the economy growing at an annualized rate of 1.6%, which would be below the roughly 2.4% rate the Bank of Canada estimates for potential growth.
Such an outcome could cement another interest rate cut when the BoC makes a policy decision next Wednesday. The central bank has cut twice since June to leave its benchmark rate at 4.50%.
Canadian government bond yields moved higher across the curve, with the 2-year up 2.2 basis points at 3.271%.
The gap between it and the U.S. equivalent narrowed by 1.6 basis points to 60 basis points in favor of the U.S. note, the narrowest gap since May 17.
Reporting by Fergal Smith, Editing by Nick Zieminski
