Canada’s Currency Advances for Second Day on Gains in Equities, Crude Oil

Canada’s dollar rose for a second day versus its U.S. counterpart, reversing a drop, after global stocks and raw materials including crude oil rose on speculation Greece will adopt an austerity package to avoid default.

The gain trimmed the currency’s loss for June to 1.4 percent in what would be the second straight monthly decrease. The greenback fell against all but one of its 16 most-traded counterparts today, the Swedish krona, amid demand for higher- yielding assets. The Canadian dollar touched a 12-year low versus the Swiss franc.

“I still don’t see the reason yet to get all bearish about the global economy,” David Watt, senior currency strategist at the RBC Capital Markets unit of Royal Bank of Canada, the nation’s biggest bank, said by phone from Toronto. “We haven’t changed our forecast” for the Canadian currency, which is 94 cents per U.S. dollar by the end of the third quarter, he said.

The Canadian dollar appreciated 0.3 percent to 98.31 cents per U.S. dollar at 12:26 p.m. in Toronto, compared with 98.61 cents yesterday and 96.85 cents at the end of May. It slipped yesterday to 99.13 cents, the lowest level since March 17. One Canadian dollar purchases $1.0172.

The franc reached 84.12 centimes per Canadian dollar, the strongest since October 1998, before trading at 84.48.

The euro gained against most of its major peers on speculation Greece’s parliament will approve a package of budget cuts and asset sales required to ensure more financial aid.