USD/CAD trades with modest losses, but manages to hold above 1.3400 mark

   “¢   The pair extends overnight pullback from over 1-week tops amid a modest USD weakness.
   “¢   Positive oil prices further underpin Loonie and contribute to the pair’s mildly offered tone.

The USD/CAD pair remained under some selling pressure through the Asian session on Tuesday and extended the overnight pullback from over one-week tops.

After a weekly bullish gap opening and a subsequent move to the 1.3500 neighbourhood on Monday, the pair started losing steam and was being weighed down by receding safe-haven demand for the US Dollar.

Despite the latest escalation in the US-China trade tensions, a goodish rebound in the US equity markets dampened the greenback’s relative safe-haven status and prompted some fresh selling around the major.

Adding to this, a positive trading sentiment around crude oil prices further underpinned the commodity-linked currency – Loonie and exerted some additional downward pressure during the US trading session.

The USD held on the defensive through the early part of Tuesday’s trading action, which coupled with a follow-through uptick in oil prices contributed to the pair’s intraday slide back closer to the 1.3400 handle.

Looking at the broader picture, the pair remains well within the last week’s broader trading band and hence, it would be prudent to wait for a sustained break through the range before positioning for the near-term trajectory.

Today’s economic docket features the release of Canadian Ivey PMI, which coupled with the release of JOLTS Job Openings data from the US might produce some short-term trading opportunities later in the day.

Technical levels to watch