Loonie declines after BOC policy decisions

The Canadian dollar slipped against most major rivals on Wednesday following an expected decision by Bank of Canada.

The BOC held interest rates flat today amid efforts to control high inflation, as forecast by analysts, at 5%.

On trading, CAD/USD slipped 0.5% to 0.7395 as of 20:25 GMT. 

Aussie

Australian dollar stabilized at 0.658 against its US counterpart as of 20:25 GMT.

US Dollar

The dollar index fell 0.4% as of 20:03 GMT to 103.2, with a session-high at 103.5, and a low at 102.7. 

Later today, initial US data on GDP growth and consumer spending will be released, crucial in gauging the likely path ahead for US policies.

Investors are also focusing on corporate quarterly results, and inflation-related data as investors expect the US economy to land softly this year, with the Federal Reserve preparing to cut interest rates.

Earlier data showed the combined S&P Global PMI index at 52.3 in January for the US, up from 50.9 in the previous reading, the fastest such increase since June.

The US services PMI rose to 52.9 this month, beating estimates and scaling a seven-month high. 

Finally, the manufacturing PMI rose to 50.3 in January from 47.9.