Canadian Dollar Advances As Oil Prices, European Shares Rise

The Canadian dollar climbed against its most major rivals in the European session on Wednesday, as oil prices rose following an industry data showing a larger than expected fall in U.S. crude inventories and on improved investor sentiment following an assurance from troubled developer Evergrande that it would make bond payments due tomorrow.

Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed that U.S. crude stockpiles dropped by 6.1 million barrels in the week ended September 17, compared to a 5.4 million-barrel drop in the previous week. Analysts had expected a decline of 2.4 million barrels.

China Evergrande Group's main unit agreed to make bond payments due on Thursday, easing some of the concerns over a messy default that could have repercussions on the broader Chinese economy.

In a statement, Hengda Real Estate Group said that it is set to make payment on 5.8% September 2025 bond due on September 23.

The People's Bank of China injected liquidity of about 110 billion Chinese yuan into the banking system to avert a credit crisis.

The loonie appreciated to 1.2770 against the greenback and 1.4977 against the euro, off its early lows of 1.2826 and 1.5036, respectively. The next possible resistance for the loonie is seen around 1.25 against the greenback and 1.48 against the euro.

The loonie reached as high as 85.79 against the yen, from a low of 85.09 seen at 5 pm ET. If the loonie rises further, 88.00 is likely seen as its next resistance level.

In contrast, the loonie held steady against the aussie, after recovering from an Asian session's low of 0.9295. The pair had closed yesterday's deals at 0.9262.

Looking ahead, U.S. existing home sales for August will be published in the New York session.

At 2:00 pm ET, the Fed announces its decision on interest rate. Economists widely expect the federal funds rate to be kept at 0 - 0.25 percent.