Loonie reaches parity with U.S. dollar again

OTTAWA — The Canadian dollar was again trading at a greater value than U.S. currency Wednesday, with the loonie getting a lift from higher crude oil prices.

The loonie rose as high as $1.0025 U.S. at about 3:25 a.m. ET, but traded above and below parity throughout the morning. At 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, it was trading around $1.0004 U.S..

Meanwhile oil, one of Canada's biggest exports, has been near a 26-month high this week. At midday Wednesday, it was trading at $91.33 U.S. a barrel, down from the previous day's close of $91.49 U.S..

On Tuesday, the dollar spent much of the day above $1 U.S.. It was trading around $1.0004 U.S. at 4 p.m. ET, when the official close would normally be set by the Bank of Canada. However, the central bank and other Canadian financial institutions were closed Monday and Tuesday in lieu of Christmas and Boxing Day.

The dollar's previous official close was 99.36 cents U.S. on Christmas Eve. The loonie last closed at parity with the U.S. greenback on Nov. 10.

© The Financial Post