Loonie Slides After Weak Canada Jobs Data

The Canadian dollar drifted lower against its major counterparts in the European session on Friday, as a data showed that the nation's employment unexpectedly shrank in May.

Data from Statistics Canada showed that Canadian employment fell by 7,500 jobs in May, defying expectations for an addition of 22,000 jobs.

This follows a decline of 1,100 jobs in April.

The unemployment rate held steady at 5.8 percent, matching forecasts.

Crude oil prices fell amid conflicting reports on OPEC's production outlook.

Reuters reports that Iran is upset with the U.S. request for Saudi Arabia to raise oil production drastically to offset a drop in Iranian exports. Tehran tells Reuters that OPEC will not comply with such a request.

The loonie fell against its most major counterparts in the Asian session, as Asian markets fell ahead of the G-7 summit starting in Canada today.

The loonie fell back to 83.91 against the yen, heading to pierce its early 8-day low of 83.86. The loonie is seen finding support around the 82.00 level.

Data from the Cabinet Office showed that Japan's final gross domestic product fell 0.2 percent on quarter in the first three months of 2018.

That was unchanged from the May 16 preliminary reading, although it defied expectations for an upward revision to -0.1 percent.

The loonie slipped to a 3-day low of 1.3037 against the greenback, from a high of 1.2969 hit at 5:30 pm ET. Next key support for the loonie is seen around the 1.32 level.

The loonie retreated to 1.5326 against the euro, from an early high of 1.5254. On the downside, 1.54 is possibly seen as the next support level for the loonie.

Data from Destatis showed that Germany's industrial production decreased unexpectedly in April.

Industrial output dropped 1 percent month-on-month in April, reversing a revised 1.7 percent rise in March. Output was forecast to grow 0.3 percent.

Having advanced to a 4-day high of 0.9844 against the aussie at 7:00 am ET, the loonie reversed direction and eased back to 0.9890. If the loonie falls further, 1.00 is likely seen as its next support level.

Looking ahead, U.S. wholesale inventories for April are due shortly.