Canada's Loonie Hits One-Week High Amid BoC Rate Hold

Canada's main equity benchmark futures hovered flat on Thursday morning following the Bank of Canada's decision to leave interest rates unchanged. The pause in early futures trading comes after a solid cash session on Wednesday, when the S&P/TSX Composite index advanced 0.74%, driven by broad gains across materials, healthcare, and financial listings.

The Canadian dollar strengthened to a more than one-week high against its U.S. counterpart, fueled by a combination of firm economic data and the Bank of Canada's decision on Wednesday to keep its target overnight interest rate steady at 2.25% for a seventh consecutive meeting.

While Governor Tiff Macklem kept the overnight rate at 2.25%, the central bank highlighted that upside risks to inflation have intensified, citing elevated energy costs linked to the Middle East conflict and potential cost pass-through from new U.S. tariffs.