USD/CAD taps 1.4400 mark for the first time since January 2016

• USD/CAD continued scaling higher amid a slump in oil prices, sustained USD buying.
• Bulls seemed rather unaffected by slightly stronger-than-expected Canadian CPI print.

The USD/CAD pair spiked to fresh multi-year tops, around the 1.4400 mark in the last hour, albeit quickly retreated few pips thereafter.

The bearish pressure surrounding the commodity-linked currency – the loonie remained unabated through the early North-American session amid the ongoing downward spiral in crude oil prices – now down around 8.5% for the day.

The pair added to its strong intraday gains and was further supported by sustained US dollar buying. The greenback remained well supported by its status as the global reserve currency in the wake of a selloff across the equity markets.

The already stronger buck was further supported by a rush to hoard cash to ride through the economic crisis stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, with bulls shrugging off slightly better-than-expected Canadian consumer inflation figures.

Meanwhile, the strong positive momentum got an additional boost in the wake of fresh expectations for an unscheduled rate cut by the Bank of Canada. Hence, the key focus will be on the appearance of the BoC Governor Poloz later this Wednesday.

Technical levels to watch