Fergal Smith

TORONTO (Reuters] – On Friday, the Canadian dollar was unchanged against its U.S. counterpart as investors weighed diplomatic attempts to prevent a Russian invasion and preliminary domestic data that showed retail sales rose in January.

According to Statistics Canada, Canadian retail sales increased 2.4% from December. This was a result of a 1.8% drop in December.

Shelly Kaushik from BMO Capital Markets said that while consumer demand is resilient, persistently strong inflation has eroded purchasing power.

U.S. stock market futures shook after U.S. Secretary-of State Antony Blinken said he was open to meeting Sergei Lavrov from Russia, raising hope of an end to standoff with Ukraine.

Canada’s largest export was oil. The prospect of Iranian oil exports increased the price of oil and led to a weeklong fall. This is despite fears that there could be disruption in supply due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Prices fell by 2.1% to $89.8 per barrel. The Canadian dollar was almost unchanged at 1.2706 against the greenback (or 78.70 U.S.cents).

It traded between 1.2675 and 1.2717. The currency gained 0.2% during the week.

Canadian police began arresting protestors as part of an operation that ended a blockade of Ottawa for three weeks by truck drivers. This had crippled Ottawa and forced Prime Minister Justin Trudeau into emergency power.

Canadian yield curve has remained flat with the short-term rate barely changing and the 10-year rate falling 1.7 basis points, to 1.899%. It reached a 3-year peak of 1.995% on Wednesday.