A combination of higher Canadian housing starts and still waiting for Washington to get its act together gave the Canadian dollar strength this morning. The USD itself is trading close to 2-year lows against a basket of major currencies, investors are waiting for Washington’s stimulus plan and the Federal Reserve’s announcement tomorrow.
The national trend in housing starts in November increased. The trend was 231,491 units in November 2020, up from 222,989 units in October 2020. Multi-family SAAR starts partly rebounded in November from two consecutive declines, offsetting a decline in single-detached SAAR starts and driving the overall trend higher. Multi-family starts were particularly strong in Vancouver and Montréal in November.
Media continues to react to Royal Lepage’s 2021 forecast of higher house prices, expectations that Vancouver prices will increase significantly after three years of stagnation. Expect a narrow range on the USDCAD.
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